Kaze Ni Hikari
by whitewolfgirl
Summary: -on hiatus; see FF profile-Izumi was raised as an orphan. She then becomes apprenticed to lonewolf, Kouji Minamoto. When they meet, disaster occurs. Will she be able to break through his hard shell, and show him the light? Read to find out. KoujiXIzumi pairing NO FLAMES!
1. Opportunity

I had this amazing dream, and it inspired me to write a Kouzumi fanfiction. It is Kouzumi, so if you aren't a fan of this pairing, then you don't have to read it. For those who want to read it, feel free to comment, but no negative comments.

I hope you enjoy this fic!

**Chapter 1: Opportunity**

"Now are you sure about this, Miss Orimoto?" the man in the dark suit questioned her with a raised eyebrow. He was carrying a medium-sized valise that contained important files of his customers, as well as other information. His eyes were covered by his dark sunglasses that reflected the sun's rays.

The blonde girl with bright green eyes ,named Izumi, nodded briskly. She looked directly at the man's eyes, even though they were covered, with a fierce look. She then replied to the man.

"Sir, I've been living in this orphanage my entire life. It's been my dream to see the world, meet new people, experience new things. I've told myself, no matter what it takes, I will meet this dream. Now the opportunity has arrived for me and I can't miss it. Do you understand sir?" Her voice told the man she was sure about her decision.

He sighed and then said,"Allright. You're a very determined girl, I can tell you that. I can't say much about where you are being sent, just that it's in Japan. I assume you can speak their language?"

"Yes, I've learned Japanese, as well as many other languages. I even learned one of their martial arts, kendo." Izumi said proudly.

The dark man couldn't help but grin at her reply. He was impressed and suprised at the same time that such a bright girl was raised in an orphanage. Even though he normally didn't take particular notice of his customers, he was glad for the girl and the opportunity that was granted to her.

Not showing how he felt, he told her,"Then you'll manage. Listen very closely now: one of my assistants will be here tommorow morning to take you to the airport. She will be with you throughout the entire trip until you arrive at your destination. Be ready by when she arrives. I wish you the best of luck."

He exited through the front door, leaving the orphanage, heading towards his next destination. Izumi watched the man through one of the windows, until his car disappeared among the others. She had a pleased expression on her face.

Sighing, she sat on one of the comfortable sofas, her mind visualizing the trip she was about to embark on.

_I can't believe it. Sixteen years living in this orphanage, and now, I'm leaving it. Japan...I wonder what it's like there? The people I'm staying with, how will they react when I arrive? Will they be nice, or cruel?_ her mind buzzed with these thoughts. She was interrupted by the sound of footsteps on the winding staircase.

Izumi turned and appeared suprised to see the rest of the orphanage. The variety of kids whose ages reached from three to twelve, stared at her silently. After a few minutes, she asked them why they were staring at her.

One of the bravest children called Kim, came up to her. She said in her sweet, innocent voice,"Is it true? You're leaving us?"

All Izumi could do was look at her and the rest of them in shock. It never occured to her when the opportunity arrived, that she would be missed. Now as she heard Kim's voice her mind went back to the good memories of her childhood, instead of the horrible ones. It was true that her entire life she had wanted nothing more than to leave the horrid place, but was it really as horrible as she thought it was?

She slowly replied to Kim and the others,"Ah...yes, I am."

"Why? Do you hate us Izumi?" the pale faced girl inquired.

"No, I don't hate you. I don't hate all of you. It's just that...none of you have been here long enough to know how I feel. By at least next month, most of you will be living with a new family and will be very happy. I've lived her for 16 years, and no one has ever considered adopting me. I don't know why, it just never happened. Now, I've been offered the chance to go somewhere new."

Izumi paused, and then continued, "I'm too old to be adopted now, but I will be sponsored by someone as a foreign student, and that someone has a family who might become my family. I'll get to learn their customs, their personalities, and much more. I'm sure all of you heard what I said to the man who came here: I can't miss this chance. Someone has listened to my wish, and is granting it. Look, no matter what you think, I'll never forget any of you. You are the family I grew up with, and still are."

She waited for her message to sink in the children's minds, and for their reply. Then, something unexpected happened. One by one they all began to cry. They ran downstairs, their footsteps sounding like the clatter of rain, and went to hug Izumi. All she could do was sit there, and then, she too was crying softly, though she had to force herself to do it.

"We'll miss you Izumi." the children chorused alltogether, with tears still in their eyes.

She closed her eyes and hugged all of them, replying,"I'll miss you guys too. If you want, I can write to all of you. I can ask the headmistress if she will let me know when one of you has been sent to a new home, and I'll send you letters to there."

One of the twelve year old boys, Jake, asked,"Will you tell us about what you are doing there?"

Izumi nodded to him. "I'll tell you what you want to hear, okay?"

He nodded and then went back to hugging her. After a few minutes, Izumi said in a joking manner,"Okay now. Get off me, you little tyrants."

The children laughed sweetly and let go of Izumi. At the same moment, the headmistress walked in, suprised at the sight. She smiled and then turned to Izumi.

"They're not the only ones who will miss you dear. I hope you will have a wonderful adventure in Japan." Mrs. Burkins said to her kindly.

"I hope so too."


	2. Departure

**Chapter 2: Departure**

Izumi closed her valise tightly and held it in her hand. She took a deep breath, and then let it out as she took one last look at the room she had lived in for 16 years. The bed had been neatly made, and the floor had been tidied up. There was a window that gave her a clear view of the city that was a few miles away from where the orphanage was. Izumi sat down on the bed and looked through the window, her mind going through her memories of when she had lived here. She then remembered the day in her history class they were told about the founding of the orphanage.

_"The first headmistress, Suzanne Johnson was the founder of the St. Cecile's Orphanage for the Homeless and Unwanted in San Francisco, California. She was born not knowing her parents like most of you, and once she became an adult, she decided to build a place where children without homes could live in. Her goal was to make sure children like you would be adopted and live in a respectable home with good parents that would take great care of you. " the history teacher told the class._

_A child sitting in the middle row raised her hand and asked,"What happened to her Ms. Sanderson?"_

_Ms. Sanderson replied,"Mrs. Johnson lived a good life helping children, and died of old age at 90 years old. She was a respected woman, and was awarded for her good service to the community."_

_She then asked the class if they had any goals or dreams they wanted to accomplish. She scanned the classroom, looking for a child who could answer, until she stopped at the top of a blonde girl's hair._

_"Izumi? Would you please share with the class any goals or dreams you have?" Ms. Sanderson asked in a polite manner._

_Izumi was startled and dropped the book she had been reading. A few of her classmates snickered but stopped when Ms. Sanderson looked at them. Everyone waited for her reply._

_"Uh well," Izumi began,"I would like to travel around the world and meet new people with different cultures."_

_"Such as..?" the teacher inquired._

_Blushing a little, Izumi spoke softly,"Japan?"_

_"But you don't speak Japanese!" one of the boys named Jared exclaimed. The rest of the class laughed aloud when they heard his remark._

_Izumi began sinking into her seat, her face tomato red with embarrassment. The teacher barked at the students to stop, and they did._

_"Japan? Ah well, that is a very creative dream, I'll give you credit for that. Why there though?" Ms. Sanderson was interested in what she had to say._

_However, Izumi didn't reply this time. She sat there meekly, looking down at her feet. After a few minutes, seeing that she wasn't going to reply, the teacher ordered the class to open their books to page 215. Izumi sighed quietly with relief and turned to that page in her textbook._

"Why did I have to say Japan?" Izumi groaned as she recalled the memory. "I could've said France, England, or Spain, and no one would've laughed at me like they did that day. No normal person would think of going to Japan as their dream."

_Yet you're leaving to go to Japan in an hour._ A small voice in her head whispered.

_Shut up._ Izumi replied back to the small voice.

To others it was known as a conscience, to her it was an annoying part of her that was more reasonable or wild than she was. It always spoke up at random times when she least expected it to, and had a cynical personality. Sometimes, that part of her took over and she couldn't control what she did when it did. Yet Izumi couldn't help but like that part of her. Even though she liked a lot of the orphans at St. Cecile's, she never made any friends with them, and the other part of her was her only friend. It was sad when she thought about it, but true.

The orphans were kind and friendly, but Izumi felt there was something in them that was missing. None of the orphans had the sense of adventure she was looking for and that she had. Whenever they were on a field trip to places in the city, Izumi would suggest that they go to a place they haven't gone to before. However, the orphans thought it would be too risky and declined, leaving her disappointed. Some of them even thought she was crazy, spreading rumors about Izumi, that she talked to herself too much.

She was upset when she heard this, but hid the pain inside of her, not letting anyone see it. However, after a certain incident which she did not want to ever remember, Izumi wasn't the same friendly and smiling person that she was. She was only six when it happened. There were orphans and teachers who asked her about it, but she had remained quiet and timid, not answering.

"Izumi! She's here!" she heard a voice call from downstairs. Izumi stood up and walked towards the door, opening it. Then she exited the door, closing it behind her, and headed downstairs.

As she walked down the stairs, she looked for the lady that was to be her guide for her trip to Japan. She noticed that most of the orphanage including the teachers were there, chatting loudly. They all stopped when they saw her. A few minutes of silence followed except for the sound of her feet going down the stairs. When she reached the bottom, one of the teachers spoke. It was no other than her history teacher, now Mrs. Sanderson, married two years ago.

Her voice had a kind edge to it, as it always had, as she spoke for everyone to Izumi. "Well, we're all here to see you off. Everyone here wanted to accompany you to the airport, but we don't have enough vehicles to carry everyone, so this is where we say our goodbyes."

Izumi shook her head to everyone's suprise and replied,"No, not goodbye. I hate saying goodbye." She then cleared her throat, knowing this would be the last thing she would say to them before she would leave. "Thank you everyone, some of you for being patient and kind with me these 16 years that I have lived here. I know to most of you I seem weird and strange, and I might be. However, is there really such thing as a normal person?" She waited to see if anyone would answer her question.

When no one did, she continued, "For those who were in my history class with Mrs. Sanderson, I'm sure you are recalling the day I told you my dream for the future, and might have some thoughts about it now. I don't blame you for laughing that day. Even I thought it was a strange dream to have, but a dream nonetheless. Well, this is it. My dream is being granted, and I'm taking advantage of it. Once everything is settled, I will write back letters, and even send pictures of how I am doing."

"I'll make sure those who are adopted get them, Izumi." the headmistress assured her. Izumi nodded to her, and turned back to everyone.

"So, yeah. There's more I could say, but I can't remember it right now." she gave a small laugh at this. Some of the orphans laughed a bit with her.

Then Mrs. Burkins said to everyone,"Well since Izumi doesn't like saying goodbyes, we won't say goodbye to her. We will however wish her luck and happiness." Everyone nodded, and did so.

"Thanks, again." Izumi said and then turned to her guide.

She looked to be in about her mid-twenties with short, brown hair and brown eyes that had black rimmed glasses. The lady was dressed in simply a t-shirt with a tan sweater over it, and blue jeans. Izumi walked towards her and introduced herself politely.

The lady spoke,"You can call me Jane, and it's very nice to meet you Izumi. You have such a nice name." She smiled cheerfully. Izumi nodded but couldn't smile like Jane did. She didn't seem to notice, and then announced to everyone,"We're off."

One of the teachers opened the door for them, and they went through. Jane's car was parked right in front of the orphanage, and she pulled out her keys from her pocket. She first opened the door for Izumi, and closed it after she was in. Then she walked over to the driver's side and entered. Izumi waved to everyone as Jane started the engine. The dark blue car began moving, as Jane maneuvered the steering wheel. Izumi put on her seat belt and looked back at St. Cecile's until it was out of sight. Then she turned around and looked to her right out the window.

_And so it begins..._

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

A cool breeze blew through the trees and other plant life in the park. All was peaceful and serene. A young man looked up at the sky with a piercing look, his blue eyes reflecting the sky's image.

"Two more days..." he muttered to himself, and looked down at a flower that was at his feet. It was a white lily that moved slightly in the wind. The young man was about to watch his step, but thought against it. His foot crushed the delicate flower, as he walked, leaving small remains behind.

_It's only a flower anyway._ He thought as he left the park. He felt as the wind's strength increased, blowing against his face. The young man winced slightly, but continued walking.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Wow, there's a lot of people here." Izumi commented to Jane as they walked amongst a large crowd of people.

"Yes, there are. An airport can get very busy with all the people traveling to and fro." Jane said and told Izumi to hold onto her hand. "Don't want you getting lost." she said to her.

Izumi nodded and held Jane's hand tightly, though she felt slightly embarrassed being treated as if she was a little kid. Still, she knew Jane was right, and because she had never been to an airport before and didn't want to be lost, she listened obediently.

"I already have the tickets for our flight, so we don't have to wait in line to buy them. Now all we have to do is hand over our luggage since it's going in a different part of the plane than we are, and then wait for our plane to arrive. Nervous?" Jane asked.

"A little." Izumi admitted. She noticed that Jane was looking at her, or rather, the way she was dressed.

"Hmm...I think the first thing we'll do is get you some new clothes once we arrive in Japan." Jane said.

Izumi replied,"Oh, but I don't have any money."

She was suprised when Jane laughed and questioned her. Jane then told her,"I never said _you_ were paying for it."

"Wha..?" Izumi had a puzzled look on her face. "But then..."

"Until you arrive at the doorstep of whoever you're going to be with, everything's on me. Think of it as a gift from myself." Jane smiled brightly, but stopped when she saw Izumi was looking down.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she frowned.

"I can't believe you're being so kind. Th-thank you, Jane." Izumi looked up at her in gratitude.

Jane said,"Hey, you're not going to cry are you?" She sighed in relief when the girl shook her head. "Then, no problem." The cheerful smile was on her face once more. They continued walking to where they would hand over their luggage.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

_"Please stay in your seats as plane descends."_ A lady's voice over the intercom announced to the passengers. It sounded short and choppy in English with an unknown accent to Izumi. Then it said, "The time in Tokyo is 3 AM. You may reset time on your watches now."

"Three AM? Wow. Huge time difference." Izumi said to Jane who simply nodded.

"You'll be suprised how crowded and busy the city is. It's like the people never sleep." she chuckled as if she had made a joke. Then she asked Izumi a question.

"Ever been in the city part of San Francisco?"

Jane received a no and raised an eyebrow. "Well, the population here is much larger. You'll see in a few minutes." At that moment, they felt a small jolt coming from the plane's landing, and held on tightly to the arm rests.

Izumi, with one hand still holding on to the arm rest, yawned and shook her head slightly. Jane noticed and commented,"Tired?"

"Mmhmm." Izumi replied.

"You'll adapt to the time change, but I guess we should find a place to stay at to rest. Then we'll do our shopping before I drop you off." said Jane.

"Sounds good to me." the blonde replied before yawning one more time. They felt another jolt and listened attentively as the voice over the intercom announced something.

The lady announced in her native tongue and then in English, _"Welcome to Tokyo, Japan."_ Izumi felt her hearbeat increase as excitement took over.


	3. Announcement

Wow, only two chapters out,and already several reviews and/or added to favorites. :3 I would like to thank you guys for taking time to read this story which simply started from a dream. Your comments help a lot!

_ototo_-younger brother

**Chapter 3:Announcement**

Every evening, the Minamoto family would eat together in the dining room after the day had gone by. Usually Kouji would skip dinner and head to his room, but today was different. His twin brother had come to visit, and Kouji knew his step-mom would force him to eat with them, so he figured he might as well save her the trouble.

When they were born, Kouji and Kouichi's parents had divorced from each other, thus the two of them were separated at birth. Kousei Minamoto, their father, had taken care of Kouji, and Tomoko Kimura had raised Kouichi along with his now deceased grandmother. Kouji's father had told him his mother had died when he was little. Later on, Kouji's father had remarried to a woman named Satomi, who became his step-mom. Kouji was angry, disliking his step-mom, thinking she was replacing his real mother.

One day, perhaps by destiny, Kouji met Kouichi and he learned the truth about his family. He then acted kinder towards Satomi, but was enraged at his father for lying to him, and had never forgiven him since then.

Kouji was a young raven-haired man, sixteen years of age. His dark hair rested on his shoulders tied in a ponytail, with a bandana over it. The new Mrs. Minamoto nagged him several times to cut it, but Kouji refused. His reason for declining was never explained, therefore Satomi had stopped bothering him about it to his relief. However, she would always compare him to his brother Kouichi, who cut his hair when it grew too long.

"You two may be twins, but both of you have different personalities and habits." she would comment to him several times. He would merely shrug and go back to what he was doing.

Besides his dark hair that was a different style from his brother's, Kouji had sapphire eyes that always had a dark tone to them. He also never smiled or showed an expression of happiness much to everyone's disappointment. Because of this personality, Kouji was automatically given the title of 'Lonewolf' throughout his school years, making him popular with most of the girls, who he ignored.

He was greeted cheerfully by his brother Kouichi, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for him. Both of them were dressed alike in fancy suits, but even then, any person would be able to tell them apart by the way they acted.

"Hey Kouji-_ototo_." said Kouichi. Kouji rolled his eyes and walked past him to the dining room. Kouichi shook his head, sighing, and followed him.

Mr. and Mrs. Minamoto were already seated and waiting for them. They were also dressed in fancy attire for this special event. The twins sat down and waited patiently.

"It's nice to see you again Kouichi." Satomi Minamoto greeted him.

"Thank you." replied Kouichi in the same manner.

"Whatever. Can we eat already?" Kouji cut in receiving a glare from his father.

Before he said anything to Kouji, Mrs. Minamoto interrupted,"Oh, of course." She couldn't help but show a small expression of sadness at seeing her son act rudely, which Kouichi noticed. He elbowed his brother and gave him a look that told him to behave. Kouji said nothing but nodded.

They ate silently for several minutes until Mrs. Minamoto asked Kouichi how he was doing in school. Kouichi replied and told her his success in academics, and the activities he did in the clubs he had joined. Then he talked about a few organizations he was put in charge of, after the teachers that sponsored them. Mr. and Mrs. Minamoto were suprised at the things he did, remembering when they asked Kouji the same question, who would reply 'fine' or 'okay' on the topic of school, if he felt like answering.

Mrs. Minamoto thought about how lucky Tomoko Kimura must be, to raise a child who was active in school. She glanced at her step-son who was looking down at his dinner eating, and wished she could've done the same with Kouji. She, like Kouji, had found out about his real mother and was also mad at her husband for lying about it. Satomi was less angry with him than Kouji was, but she tried her best to show Kouji why his father had hid the truth. She also tried being a good mother to him, and at some times he accepted her, but at other times he was still instinctively mad at her.

Kouichi interrupted her thoughts when he said,"Kouji must have told you, but he's also a member of the organization where we interact with other teenagers from different parts of the world. Just recently, our school has participated in the event where a household takes in either a person as a foreign exchange student, or a person who has no home and we find them a home while showing them how it is to live as part of a family. I wish I could've volunteered for the event, but because my mother and I don't have enough room and funds to sponsor someone, I insisted on Kouji volunteering."

At that moment Kouji looked up at his brother, glaring at him angrily. Mr. and Mrs. Minamoto stopped eating, and looked at Kouichi with interest. Mr. Minamoto commented that they weren't told about any of this. Kouichi frowned and looked at his glaring brother and then back at his parents.

"Well," he continued,"a week ago, members of the organization signed up for this, I signed Kouji up, and a few days later we received notification letters from different institutions whose students will be coming here to meet their sponsor and sponsor family. Kouji received a reply from an institution in the United States, specifically San Francisco, California. In a few days that person will come here to meet all of you and stay for a year if it's a student, or..however long if it is a person who doesn't have a home." Kouichi's voice became quieter as he saw the effect that was taking place.

Mr. Minamoto began, looking at both Kouji and Kouichi,"A few days. In a few days someone from another country is coming here? To our home?" He wasn't angry but deeply suprised.

"I told you not to make me join." Kouji muttered to his brother.

Kouichi didn't hear his comment however, and nodded to Mr. Minamoto. "Yes. According to the letter from the institution called..." He paused as he scooted back in his chair, and took a paper from his pocket, and read it silently.

Then he told the family,"Well...since some of Kouji's interests include martial arts, this person was chosen to be sponsored. The institution didn't give us much information about the person, just that they have high academic scores, and gifted in martial arts. The day after tommorow, that person will be coming here."

"But...that's in two days. Kouji! Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Mrs. Minamoto exclaimed to her son.

He said in a soft voice,"I thought you would be angry."

His stepmother's mouth opened in an 'o' and she said,"Angry? Why would be angry? This is great news. I've always wanted to sponsor a foreign child. We had the same event at my school when I was your age." She said the last part to Kouichi who smiled.

"Satomi," a voice spoke up suddenly. It was Mr. Minamoto. She turned around to look at him,"I know you're excited, but shouldn't you think about what your son just did?" Kouji frowned at hearing the words, 'your son'.

"I know, but when you think about why he didn't tell us, it's a reasonable explanation."she replied. This time Kousei frowned at the word 'reasonable'. Mrs. Minamoto continued,"We'll get to meet someone from America. I've never been to the western side of the world. Don't you think it will be intriguing at meeting someone from there? That person will share their experiences, culture, as well as many other things. Why, we don't have anytime to think about it. We should be preparing for this person's arrival." Without saying any more, Mrs. Minamoto stood up from her seat, and picked up her plate of unfinished dinner.

"I guess this means dinner is over?" Kouji asked rhetorically. Kouichi shrugged, and did the same as Mrs. Minamoto.

Mr. Minamoto then said,"I haven't seen her this excited since I proposed to her." Kouji raised an eyebrow at what he said, but didn't reply. Mr. Minamoto said to him,"I'm not mad that you didn't tell us about this sooner, just don't do it again."

"Whatever." said Kouji. Both of them followed the other two's actions, and pushed in their seats at the dinner table, following them as well. After everyone had rid of their dinner, they all gathered in the largest room downstairs.

"Wait, but Kouji...aren't you going to stay at your grandfather's until school starts next year to train more in kendo?" Mrs. Minamoto asked.

Kouji nodded and said,"Dad promised me two years ago that once I turned sixteen, and if I was passing my classes, I could at this time." He looked at his father who frowned at him.

He didn't speak for a moment, but then said,"Well you're the one who is sponsoring this person. I suppose that person will have to go to where you're going as well."

"What?!" Kouji exclaimed angrily. He had been waiting for two years for this time to come, and didn't want anyone to interrupt his training.

"Oh, but I wanted to meet this person." Mrs. Minamoto said sadly.

Kouichi then suggested,"Well, since that person doesn't know that Kouji is going to his grandfather's, they'll come here first. Technically, you will meet that person, and then you can bring that person to where Kouji is."

"Yes, that's a good idea." Mr. Minamoto agreed.

Kouji scowled but finally nodded and said,"Fine."

"Then it's all settled." Kouichi said cheerfully, ignoring another glare he received from Kouji.


	4. Departure Part Two

I do not in any way own the characters or the Digimon Franchise, except for Yuki and Jane who I made up of course. :3 (Well technically my friend owns Jane, xd) This was written for pure pleasure.

_otoosan-father_

_ojiisan-grandfather_

_sensei-teacher_

**Chapter 4: Departure Part Two**

**9:00 AM Kuraka five star hotel Tokyo, Japan**

A teenager gazed out the crystal clear window, staring at the sight below and beyond her. Jane had been right, Tokyo seemed to be a city that never rested. Izumi couldn't pull herself away from the window, as her eyes darted from building to building, and at the people that traveled around.

"Even with the busyness, it's a beautiful city." she said softly, amazed. Her attention was currently on the people that were moving. They all looked the same to one another, with dark hair and slanted eyes. "Kim...they all look like Kim." she couldn't help but giggle at the thought.

Then she heard a voice call from outside her door. It was Jane. Izumi went and opened the door, letting her in. Jane noticed as she walked in, how tidy the room was, much unlike her own.

_They must have taught cleanliness at St. Cecile's. Well as the saying goes, "Cleanliness is next to godliness" _Jane thought to herself and looked at Izumi who had went back to looking out the window.

"How you doing kiddo?" she asked, startling her.

"I'm doing fine." Izumi replied, not taking her eyes off the sight below her.

"You should see the suburbs and the countryside. Really beautiful. Speaking of which, that's where we're going." Jane told her.

"What? So the family isn't living here in the city?" Izumi asked.

Jane shook her head and replied,"No, but that doesn't mean you won't get to come back here. From what I read about the family, they live in the suburbs,and frequently come to the city. The father works here actually, while the mother stays at home."

"And their children?" Izumi was now interested in what Jane had to say.

The lady could see she was and told her,"They have one child, a boy who is your age, perhaps a few months older. Kouji is his name, Kouji Minamoto. He goes to the public highschool in the area they live in. He's your sponsor Izumi."

"A boy?" Izumi said somewhat dissatisfied. "I thought I was getting a girl sponsor."

"Yeah, I'm not sure what happened there." Jane said, trying not to laugh.

"Oh well. It's too late to go back to St. Cecile's." Izumi said somewhat in a cheerful tone.

"Well, if for some reason things turn sour, you can call me and you can stay with another sponsor family either here in Japan, or somewhere else. However, I'm sure everything will be fine." Jane handed Izumi a small card that had her name and contact information on it. Izumi put it into her pocket of the jeans Jane had purchased for her.

Jane then gave her a look that meant they were leaving. Izumi nodded and picked up her suitcase that carried her belongings. They walked out of the room, shutting the door behind them, and headed in the elevator to the first floor of the hotel.

**Noon, Yamaguchi High School, Main Cafeteria**

"Wait, let me get this right: You, Lonewolf Kouji Minamoto, Mr. I-Hate-Talking-To-Anyone... is sponsoring a foreigner?" a brunette teenager spoke with a shocked expression on his face. His hair was messy as usual, and there was a hint of mischief gleaming in his dark brown eyes.

The person he was speaking to scowled at him and didn't reply. Of all people to find out besides his parents, it had to be _him_.

_Thanks a lot Kouichi. _Kouji thought in his mind.

"You realize since you're doing that sponsoring thingie, you'll have to actually speak more than one word to them?" Takuya Kanbara said, laughing.

Kouji replied,"I know, I'm not an idiot like you."

"Hey!" Takuya was about to say more when Kouichi cut into their conversation. The three of them were sitting together eating lunch as usual.

"Now Kouji, make sure you're nice to the person you're sponsoring. We don't want our school to be ashamed because of your actions." Kouichi said to his brother.

"He means don't be your normal self otherwise you're screwed." Takuya translated for Kouji.

"Yeah, whatever." Kouji ignored the two and went back to eating his lunch.

Takuya looked at Kouichi who looked at him back. Then they said in unison,"He's screwed."

**5:oo PM Outside Main Gates of Yamaguchi High**

"Hey, you don't mind if I come over to your grandfather's to visit sometime?" Takuya asked Kouji.

"No, you might actually be of some help." replied Kouji. Unfortunately, Takuya didn't catch the insult, and was confused when he saw Kouichi laughing.

The three of them were walking home, talking about several things, the current subject on Kouji sponsoring a foreigner. Takuya had teased him on the subject, earning a punch in the stomach. Several people at the school wondered how those two had become close friends when looking at their personalities. Most of them agreed it was Kouichi and their other two friends who kept them in line.

"Hey, I just remembered I didn't see Junpei or Tomoki today." Takuya told the twins.

Kouichi answered before Kouji made a snide comment,"Junpei called sick, and Tomoki is on a class field trip."

"Aw, they're going to miss saying goodbye to Kouji." Takuya said upset.

Kouji shrugged and replied,"It's probably better like that. I hate saying goodbye anyway. It's too much trouble. Besides, they'll still see me at school. It's my parents who won't get to see me except for on breaks."

"True." Takuya and Kouichi agreed.

They stopped in front of a house that had surrounding brick walls not part of the house. On one of them, there was a nameplate with the name 'Kanbara' engraved in it. Below it were the names of the residents: Hiroki, Yuriko, Takuya, Shinya.

"See you tommorow at the 'prison'." Takuya joked to the two brothers, and rushed inside before his mother yelled at him. Kouji rolled his eyes in exasperation while Kouichi merely shrugged. Then the two of them began walking to where Kouichi lived.

**5:30 PM Kimura Residence**

After a few years of living in a one room apartment, and Kouichi having found his twin brother, Tomoko Kimura was able earn enough money to buy the two of them a small house in the suburbs. Part of the money was donated by Satomi, Kouji's stepmother, who wanted to help her son's biological mother and Tomoko's son. Because of this, the two of them were able to become close friends despite the fact that Satomi had married Kousei Minamoto. Just like Kouichi visited the Minamotos, Satomi would visit the Kimura's for tea where she would talk with Tomoko while Kouji and Kouichi worked on their homework.

Tomoko Kimura was glad to see her two sons when she opened the door, and welcomed them in. Normally if Satomi wasn't with them, Kouji would simply head straight home after saying hello to his mother. However, since Kouji was going to live with his grandfather for awhile, he came to see his mother for a bit longer.

"Hello Kouji." Ms. Kimura greeted her son while she told her other son to bring them a snack.

"Hey." Kouji said quietly, not quite meeting his mother's eyes. The first time he came to see her, she was full with tears of happiness for being reunited with her other son. He was nervous at that time and couldn't even bring himself up to say hello. After a few more times of coming to see her however, he was able to gradually strike up a casual conversation.

"So how's school?" she asked him in her gentle voice. While he hardly said anything to his father and stepmother at home, he had told his mother about the things he did at school.

"It was ok. Have homework, but nothing too hard. We have some new members in our kendo club and sensei wants me to test them to see how good they are." he replied normally.

"Also, the person he's sponsoring should have arrived today and he'll meet that person tommorow. The one from America." Kouichi said as he came into the dining room.

"Oh, that too." Kouji said in a monotonous voice.

Tomoko Kimura noticed and commented,"You don't seem to happy. Care to share?"

Kouji shrugged and replied,"I have no idea how I'm supposed to sponsor this person. Kouichi signed me up in the first place and now that person is here, hoping to learn more about our culture."

"Kouichi told me you're well...not exactly interactive with anyone besides him, Takuya, Junpei, and Tomoki. I think it was a good idea for him to do that. You need to interact more with others Kouji." she said in a motherly tone.

Her son sighed and said,"I'll do whatever I have to do for this person, but I'm not exactly the right person for this job. I'll also be busy with school and training that I don't know if I'll have time to show them our customs and other stuff."

"I'm sure you will find a way. Kouichi can help you since he wanted to do it, but as you know I can't support anyone else besides him." Kouji's mother told him. He nodded, knowing what she meant.

For the next few hours,they talked about other things, and ate dinner. Ms. Kimura had called the Minamotos to let them know where he was and that he would be home soon. They watched TV for awhile after Kouji and Kouichi finished their homework. Then, their mother suggested driving Kouji home since it was dark outside.

**8:oo PM Minamoto Residence**

Kouichi and Ms. Kimura waved goodbye to him before he entered the house and was greeted by his parents. The next few hours then were spent packing his belongings into suitcases before he would be dropped off at his grandfather's house. When they were done with that, they all gathered in front of the TV in the living room.

"Do you have everything?" Mr. Minamoto asked him. Kouji nodded and waited to see what they would say.

"Well, be careful. Also, take care of your grandfather. He's an adult, but because of his age he needs help from you. Your..uh, sponsoree will be arriving here soon and will stay for the night in your room. Then in the morning your sponsoree will arrive at your grandfather's and it's all in your hands." he finished.

Kouji didn't say anything, just nodded. Suddenly, his stepmother hugged him with tears in her eyes.

"You've grown into a handsome young man these past few years. Like your father said, be careful. I..I love you Kouji." Satomi began and ended up crying even harder.

Suprised at how she reacted to his departure, Kouji's face began turning red. He knew he wouldn't see her for awhile and knew he would feel stupid saying it, but then told his stepmother,"I...I l-love you too...m-mom."

Satomi gasped at his son's words and clutched him even tighter, sobbing uncontrollably. After a few minutes, she calmed down and said she was fine. Then the three of them left the house and entered the car. As they drove to where Kouji's grandfather lived, all of them were silent inside the car.

**11:oo PM Minamoto Senior Residence**

"Well, we're here." Mr. Minamoto announced to everyone.

Kouji opened the car door to his right and looked at the house that he was staying at for about a year. He had been here before when he was younger and every summer, but never longer than that. The house was an hour and a half away from Yamaguchi High, mostly where the countryside started. It was a simple home, with surrounding trees and plants. As Kouji walked towards the house, he heard the sound of barking, and had to dodge when his grandfather's dog, Yuki tried to jump on him. He patted her on the forehead, and then looked up as he saw his grandfather come out of the house to welcome his parents who were taking Kouji's belongings out of the car's trunk.

Mr. Minamoto senior looked like an older version of Mr. Minamoto and an even more aged version of Kouji himself. However, he lacked the 'Lonewolf' tone that Kouji carried.

"There he is." he said when he spotted Kouji with Yuki. They shook hands and Kouji murmured 'sensei' as he bowed. His parents handed some of his stuff to his grandfather, and the rest to Kouji.

"You can do that once we work on the rest of your training. Right now it's _ojiisan_." Mr. Minamoto senior told his grandson in his elderly voice as he took the stuff he was handed.

"We told you about the other person that's arriving tommorow morning." Kousei Minamoto said to his father.

Hiroshi Minamoto nodded and replied,"Ah yes. It will be nice to meet a newcomer. Isn't that right Kouji?"

"Yeah." Kouji murmured softly.

"Take care of him, _otoosan_." said Kousei Minamoto

"I will. Though he might be taking more care of me than I will." the grandfather replied laughing.

With that, Kouji's parents entered their car, and drove away without saying another word. Kouji watched them until the car was out of sight. He felt something warm and wet touch the palm of his hand and looked down to see Yuki with her wagging tail.

"Good girl." he said to her and then saw his grandfather was already at the door.

"Come on! We still have to clean up the bedroom for our guest!" Hiroshi Minamoto shouted.

Kouji sighed and ran inside carrying his stuff, with Yuki following and barking behind.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

It certainly will be interesting when the two of them meet. :3 Please Review and NO FLAMES!


	5. Encounter

Although I should be doing my homework seeing as I only have tommorow to do it before Thanksgiving Break is over, this is much more fun to do. :P

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS EXCEPT FOR THE ONES I MADE UP, NOR THE DIGIMON FRANCHISE. THIS FANFIC WAS MADE FOR PURE PLEASURE. Some credit goes to Koz for turning me into a Kouzumi fan. :3 Koz-Kozumi, hehe.

**Chapter 5: Encounter**

_Ring! Ring! Ring!_ The doorbell rang loudly.

"Coming!" a woman's voice shouted as she ran to the door.

"Who is it at this time?" a man who was preparing to go to sleep.

Satomi Minamoto gave her husband a look that told him the answer. He followed behind her to the door, and watched as she opened it revealing two guests.

"Come in, come in! We've been waiting for you!" she said eagerly and Kousei Minamoto watched with much interest at the two guests who entered.

A moment's silence followed between the guests and the Minamotos. Then, Satomi said,"Wow...I didn't expect...wow. He will definitely be suprised when he meets you." Kousei Minamoto couldn't help but give a small smile at his wife's reaction.

_He most certainly will._

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

The raven-haired young man yawned as he got up from his bed. The first thing he did was gaze out the window at the view before him. He saw many tall trees, a large, open green field with flowers growing on it, and a small oval-shaped pond. It was a peaceful scene, and Kouji couldn't help but attempt to grin, failing miserably.

"Kouji, breafast is ready!" the voice of an old man came from downstairs. The peaceful image in his head wavered, before collapsing. Before Kouji went downstairs, he made his bed and dressed.

Yuki greeted him by trying to lick his face and jumping up and down. Hiroshi Minamoto chuckled when he saw and told Kouji she liked him, before going back to eating his breakfast. Kouji didn't say anything, sitting down and began eating his own breakfast. As they ate in silence, Kouji's heart began beating slightly faster. He was nervous about the arrival of the person, and didn't know what to expect.

_Okay, Kouichi gave me some tips on what to say. I'll just say: Hello, my name is Kouji Minamoto. It's a pleasure to meet you. Then I'll ask them what their name is, likes, dislikes, etc. No problem._ Kouji went over what Kouichi told him to say as he ate his rice.

There was a knocking at the door. Kouji's grandfather got up from his seat, and Yuki began barking in a happy manner.

"That must be our guest." he winked at Kouji and went into the hallway to the front door with Yuki following. Once he left, Kouji began muttering to himself.

"Wait, what if the person can't speak Japanese? It's a Yankee, so..English! Ok, I'll just talk in English. But what if I can't understand what that person says? Ugh! Why did Kouichi force me into this situation in the first place?!"

"Hello! So _you're_ the one who will be our guest!" he heard his grandfather's voice come from the hallway and wondered what was going on. Then he heard,"Oh, he's in there if you want to meet him. Go on!"

_Great. Thanks a lot, grandfather._ Kouji groaned in his mind and all he could do was stare at his plate and wait. He heard footsteps approach the kitchen, and his hand held onto the chopsticks even harder.

The footsteps came closer and closer, and Kouji clutched harder and harder until he heard a snap come from his hand. He shook off the broken the chopsticks and place both of his hands on the table, pushing his breakfast farther in front of him. Kouji could now hear the footsteps behind him, and then heard them stop suddenly.

Kouji took a silent deep breath, let it out and turned around to face the person.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"They were sure nice." Izumi smiled as she said this. She was sitting where in the Western Hemisphere would be called the driver's side, but it was known as the passenger's side of the car in the Eastern Hemisphere. Jane had called the company she worked for at the hotel they had stayed at, and a car was lent to them so she could take Izumi to her destination. Izumi noted the similarities between this car and the car she had rode in leaving the orphanage.

"That was sure unexpected though. I thought you were going to meet him at his house, but it turns out he moved to a place an hour and a half away from here!" Jane exclaimed.

Izumi then told her,"Well, they told us that he was planning to live at his grandfather's house for a year for some time. It's okay though. Anyway, they sure seemed suprised to see me."

"Well of course they were. All sponsoring families usually are. Of course that was only for the first few minutes. After that, they greeted you nicely." Jane explained to Izumi.

She nodded but then said,"I know, but for some reason...they seemed really suprised to see me. Mr. Minamoto smiled after his wife told us that her son will 'definitely be suprised' when he meets me. Also, the first words that came out of her mouth. You heard them, Jane."

"Hmm..well you have a point about that. I wonder if they were hiding something. But what?" Jane pondered over it.

Izumi grinned at Jane's assumption and said,"It's probably nothing. Anyway, so where is the place he's staying at?"

"Um, well Mr. and Mrs. Minamoto said it's the first house you see when you enter the countryside. It doesn't have a specific address so that's all the information they gave me." Jane replied.

"Oh, allright." was all Izumi said.

Jane continued driving, both of them very silent, looking at the different houses they passed by. Izumi was thinking of what she should say to the person who was her sponsor, once she met him. She then recalled the Minamotos telling them that the place she came from didn't send them anymore information about her other than her academic grades and her interest in martial arts.

_So he doesn't know exactly who I am, but I do. His reaction will probably be much more interesting to see than mine. He'll probably greet me by giving his name first and then say something about how it's nice meeting me. Then he might ask my name and other things along with it, which is where I'll say: Hi, my name is Izumi Orimoto. It's a pleasure to meet you too. Then after that...oh, he's Japanese, so I'll have to reply in Japanese. I hope I don't sound too weird, but I probably will seeing as I haven't spoken Japanese to a Japanese person since the Suzuki family came to adopt a child. They even corrected me several times on my pronounciation. I wonder if Kouji knows English? Wait, he should. It's required for students to learn. Even so, will I be able to understand what he is trying to say to me? Argh, this is nerve-breaking! _Izumi's thoughts revolved swiftly in her mind. Then the other side of her spoke up.

_Calm down. You'll do fine._

_But what if he doesn't like the way I look or talk or..._ Izumi began but the other side of her interrupted.

_Then he'll have to deal with it seeing as you don't have anywhere else to go yet. Besides, you can always beat him up if he does something to hurt you._

Izumi thought, _You're right. I don't know why I'm getting all worked up about it. I just need to relax and act normal. Everything will be fine._

_There you go._

Jane interrupted Izumi and her thoughts when she said suddenly,"We're here."

Izumi looked at where she was pointing at and couldn't help but admire the beauty of the place. She then managed to calm down and open the car door. Following Jane, Izumi walked towards the door of the house. She noticed the large, green open field with flowers, the small pond and the many trees surrounding the house, and felt serene.

Jane rang the doorbell three times and waited patiently. Both of them heard the sound of a dog barking and someone walking towards the door. Izumi gulped, but relaxed. The door opened revealing an elderly man. He welcomed them inside and said,""Hello! So _you're_ the one who will be our guest!" Izumi understood what he said and nodded timidly.

While Jane introduced herself to the man in suprisingly clear Japanese, Izumi petted the snow white dog that was at her feet. Her tongue licked the palm of her hand playfully, while her tail wagged rapidly. She then heard the elderly man speak to her and looked up at him.

"Oh, he's in there if you want to meet him. Go on!" he said smiling. Izumi looked at Jane who simply nodded to her.

With the dog following behind her, Izumi walked at a slow pace to where the man had said her sponsor was. As she walked, her heart began thumping faster and faster. She saw that she had arrived in the kitchen and saw that someone was sitting down at the table, his back turned to her. Izumi noted the long black ponytail that hanged behind him.

He didn't turn around when she stepped inside the kitchen, so she continued walking at a slow pace. When she was three feet away from him, he finally turned around to face her. Time seemed to freeze as the stared at one another.

Izumi's first thought when she saw his face was, _Wow, he's handsome._ Her mind then froze, rewinded, and played back what she said. Before she was going to wonder about why she thought that, the young man spoke.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Hello, my name is Kouji Minamoto. It's a pleas-" Kouji began when he turned around to face the guest. He froze when he saw who it was.

She was a bit shorter than him with long blonde hair that ran behind her back, some of it in front of her, running down her shoulders. Her eyes were a bright emerald color, and her skin was a soft peach. Yuki had followed her into the kitchen, and when the two of them didn't do anything, she ran out of the kitchen. The expression on the girl's face however, was very interesting. She didn't look suprised to see him but was a bit startled. Kouji could feel her eyes looking at his, and his at hers.

His first thought was, _A girl? A pretty girl but..._ then his mind froze at the words he had thought.

Neither of them spoke, simply staring at each other. Kouji tried to say something, but it got stuck in his throat. The girl didn't move, or do anything else except breathe. Time passed slowly between the two as they stood and sat there in silence.

Finally, Kouji decided to finish what he had to say. His mind felt numb as he said it however. He took a deep, silent breath and spoke, "Hello my name is Kouji Minamoto. It's a pleasure to meet you."

The girl nodded or at least Kouji thought she nodded. Her head barely moved as she did so however. A few more minutes went by in silence, and then Kouji asked her what her name was.

She seemed to struggle for words as she replied back to him, and Kouji had to strain his ears to hear, but managed to understand what she said.

"I'm I-Izumi." Izumi replied numbly and softly. "Izumi Orimoto." Kouji could tell her speaking was a bit strange, but was suprised she replied back in Japanese even though he told her his name and asked the question in English.

"Izumi. I see." he said, his voice back at it's normal volume. He didn't look at her as he said this however, since he was deep in thought about something. _They sent me a girl to sponsor. A girl... _He was about to think about something else when he heard the sound of footsteps come from the hallway.

Kouji turned and saw his grandfather enter the kitchen with a lady in her mid-twenties. Izumi turned around as well. They both had cheerful expressions on their faces as they entered.

"Hello you two." the woman spoke fluently in Japanese. She then faced Kouji and introduced herself,"Jane Alison. I take it you are Kouji Minamoto?" She received a nod from Kouji. Then his grandfather asked her if she would like something to eat.

Jane Alison shook her head and said,"I wish I could, but I have other tasks to attend to. Thank you for your hospitality however. May I say goodbye to Izumi before I leave her in your hands?"

"Of course." Kouji's grandfather replied.

Kouji watched as the girl named Izumi followed the woman named Jane to the main door. Once they were over there, he turned around to face his plate. His grandfather frowned slightly at his behaviour but said nothing, knowing something was going on with him. He called Yuki who came into the kitchen barking, and fed her. Kouji waited patiently to hear the girl's footsteps again, not thinking of anything else.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Well...this is where we say our goodbyes. However, I seem to recall that at the orphanage you said you don't do 'goodbye'. How about a see you later?" Jane said smiling, but her smile dropped when Izumi didn't reply right away.

Izumi then heard her and looked up at Jane. "Yes, of course. See you later, Jane." she said to Jane.

"Are you okay Izumi?" Jane asked her frowning.

"I am, just a bit...you know." Izumi replied.

Jane looked at her with a puzzled look and then a grin appeared on her face.

"Ah, so that's what it is." she said, the grin wide on her face.

It was Izumi's turn to have a puzzled expression on her face. "What is what?" she asked Jane.

"Oh, nothing." Jane changed the subject quickly. "Remember, if you need any help with anything, just call me."

Izumi nodded and then knew these would probably be her final words to Jane. She began,"Jane, thank you for your kindness. Maybe we will see each other again, you never know."

"You're right." said Jane, who was smiling at Izumi. "It looks like they will need some help in organizing this place. Maybe you can help them with it." She winked at Izumi who couldn't help but give a small smile.

"Well, see you later." she said, as she opened the door. Izumi didn't follow her out the door, but watched as Jane got into her car and started the engine. She waved at Jane who waved back and watched as she drove away and out of sight.

Once the car was gone, Izumi shut the door gently and turned around to see the white dog looking at her. She petted the dog and whispered to her,"I guess we'll have to make sure these men live in an organized and clean house huh?" The dog barked in reply and ran towards the kitchen.

Izumi Orimoto sighed and followed the dog, heading towards her new family.


	6. First Day of School

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS EXCEPT FOR THE ONES I MADE UP, NOR THE DIGIMON FRANCHISE. THIS FANFIC WAS MADE FOR PURE PLEASURE.

**Chapter 6:First Day Of School**

A loud knocking at her door woke Izumi. She groaned softly but managed to awaken and slide off her bed. When she opened the door, she was slightly suprised to see Kouji holding a plate of rice.

"Here." he mumbled, shoving the plate into her hands. Then he turned around and walked downstairs, leaving her confused.

_Well that wasn't very nice._ Izumi thought at what just happened, but quickly decided he was just being shy.

The day before, after Jane departed, Izumi had went back to the kitchen and was given breakfast by the elderly man who was Kouji's grandfather. While she ate, he would ask her questions about where she came from. However, Izumi was vague in her responses and sometimes didn't answer them completely. She would only answer questions that weren't related to the fact that she came from an orphanage, in fear that they would laugh at her if she told them. When she replied, Izumi could feel Kouji's eyes on her the entire time, never leaving to look at something else. This made her nervous, but she managed to ignore his blank gaze that showed none of his emotions.

She couldn't help but be intrigued by his attitude. _'A silent and mysterious warrior'_ was the phrase she used to describe him, as well as the term _'Lonewolf'_.During the middle of one of her replies, Kouji stood up from his seat and told his grandfather he was going to be late to school. His grandfather nodded and told Izumi she would stay at the house while he would drop off Kouji at his school. The two left her alone, with the exception of the dog named Yuki, meaning _'snow'_,and headed towards the school. Once they were gone, Izumi sighed with relief. The first thing she did was clean the table which they ate at, seeing they left a mess on it. Then she headed upstairs to the room that was to be hers, and started cleaning there, unpacking her belongings. When she was done, she rested on her bed while staring at the ceiling, and her mind began to fill with thoughts.

_I wonder what the school is like, and the people there. Does he have any close friends, classmates he talks to...? There's so many questions I would like to ask him, but that would make me appear rude and demanding. I guess I'll have to wait for him to start asking the questions, but I'll have to be discreet when answering them._ she thought as she layed there in bed. Then the other Izumi spoke.

_He looks kinda cute, don't you think?_ she said in a mischevious voice.

Izumi replied, _No, not at all. _However, she said this a little bit too quickly, and the other Izumi snickered. Izumi told her to go away, but the voice stayed.

_Why do you deny it?_ it asked.

She replied, _I'm not denying it! It's you who thinks he is!_

_Ah, but I'm a part of you, therefore you also have the same opinion._ it replied back.

_Well, I don't._

_Of course not._ the other her said sarcastically. She ignored it and then heard the sound of a car approaching.

Izumi went to greet Kouji's grandfather, and they went outside to enjoy the rest of the day. Later, he went back to pick Kouji up, and once again Izumi went to her room to think. Kouji didn't say anything when they arrived, but simply went to his room. His grandfather noticed this and told Izumi he was probably just tired from school. Then he told her the reason Kouji moved in with him.

"Kousei promised him that when he turned 16, around mid-October, Kouji could come and stay with me to complete his training." Hiroshi Minamoto told her.

"Training?" she inquired curiously.

"For kendo. He's an expert at martial arts at his school and in this area, won many medals. Soon he will even surpass my skills and become a master at them. His specialty is kendo. Kouji started training when he was three, and would come during the summer once he started school, to train. From what Kousei told me, he's the teacher's assistant for the kendo club he is in." he answered.

Izumi couldn't help but be impressed. She would've never guessed this at first sight from her sponsor. Even though Izumi was given information about Kouji, it wasn't a lot. Now she had an idea about why she was chosen to be the person he would sponsor, and was delighted at getting a chance to see Kouji in his area of expertise, which happened to be one of Izumi's. She told Mr. Minamoto senior that she also had trained in martial arts back in America, but she said that she probably wasn't as good as Kouji.

"If you want, you can train with Kouji and he might even teach you some things when I am busy." Mr. Minamoto senior suggested.

"Are you sure?" Izumi didn't want to interrupt his time with Kouji. He nodded and said it was fine. Izumi gave her farthest attempt of a smile and thanked him. He noted her trying to smile and wondered about it, but said nothing.

The two were too busy talking to each other, that they didn't notice Kouji had come out of his room and was upstairs listening to their every spoken word. He had frowned when he heard Izumi was allowed to train with them, but was also interested to know Izumi had trained in martial arts.

_A girl learning martial arts. None of the girls I know are even slightly interested in them. Even if one were, people would find out and talk about that person. She comes from an interesting place, this Izumi Orimoto._ he thought, before heading back to his room.

The only other time Izumi saw Kouji, was when they all gathered to eat dinner. She noted that his grandfather wasn't exactly the best cook, and decided she would take charge of cooking for them, announcing this to Mr. Minamoto senior, who was a bit suprised, but agreed. No reaction came from Kouji, she noted as well. After dinner, all of them went to their own room and headed to sleep. For Izumi, it was awhile before sleep overtook her, sending her into a world full of dreams.

After Izumi finished her breakfast, she made her bed and dressed into one of the outfits Jane had the pleasure of getting for her. She then remembered the departing Jane and decided to take good care of the clothing she was given. Then, she went downstairs to find Kouji and his grandfather in the kitchen. Kouji's grandfather greeted her warmly as ever, and Kouji said nothing as usual. Mr. Minamoto senior then told Izumi something important.

"Kouji let the ones in charge of the organization he joined that you arrived. Starting today, you will be going to his school." he said to her.

She nodded but then told him,"But I didn't bring anything for school."

He replied,"Oh don't worry. You'll get all of that once you arrive at the school. Kouji will also help you with the stuff you need. Right Kouji?" he turned to Kouji at the last part.

"Whatever." was Kouji's only response.

Hiroshi Minamoto nodded and then said,"I see you're dressed Izumi. We should leave now then, since Yamaguchi High School is an hour and half away from here, and you don't want to be late on your first day."

"Yes, of course." Izumi agreed.

The elder man told Kouji to grab his school bag and to meet them outside at his car. While Kouji went upstairs to grab his stuff, Izumi followed his grandfather to his car. She entered the car, sitting in the back, with him holding the door open for her. He closed it and then went to the driver's side and entered the car. A few minutes later, Kouji came and sat in the passenger's side. He didn't look at Izumi as he did so, and told his grandfather to go. Mr. Minamoto senior started the car, and slowly backed out onto the road.

The rest of the trip was spent in silence since no one spoke inside the car. The entire time Izumi looked out her window at the scenery, while thinking how her first day of school would be like. Her thoughts were interrupted when Mr. Minamoto announced they were nearing the school. Sure enough, when the car turned, the first thing Izumi saw was a large building that teenagers were heading towards. Her heart began beating faster as Kouji's grandfather found a place to stop at, and they got out of the car. He waved goodbye to them once they were out and Izumi watched as the car disappeared in the distance.

Izumi turned around to find Kouji staring at her. When he saw she noticed, he quickly turned around and began heading inside the school. Before she did, Izumi looked at the large building, took a deep breath, and then let it out. Then she followed Kouji inside.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

The class whispered amongst themselves when the teacher went to settle a fight out in the hallways. There was no doubt about who they were talking about.

"Look at the color of her hair. It's as bright as the sun." a girl murmured to her friend.

"I heard that she's from America; a Yankee." a boy sitting in the back whispered to one of his companions sitting in front of him.

Izumi tried to ignore their conversation, but found it very difficult. Sideglancing, she saw Kouji working on the assignment the teacher left them to work on, and not talking with any of his classmates. She decided to do the same, and looked at her assignment. The class stopped talking when the teacher came back, telling them the person had been sent to the principal to deal with the problem. She continued with the lesson until the bell rang.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Hey Kouichi, have you seen Kouji?" Takuya asked.

The short raven-haired young man shook his head and replied that he hadn't. Takuya frowned and said aloud that he wondered where their companion could be. As they walked through the hallways, Takuya and Kouichi heard people talk about a new student that had arrived at their school, from America. Kouichi stopped when he heard the words 'followed after Minamoto'.

Kouichi went to one of the girls who was talked them and asked them,"What do you mean, the student followed after Minamoto?"

The girl replied,"I'm in most of Kouji's classes and I saw that the girl followed him everywhere he went. She seemed lost and tried to keep up with him. One of the teachers introduced her, saying her name was Izumi Orimoto."

"Do you know where they are now?" Kouichi asked eagerly.

"I saw them head towards the cafeteria." he received a reply.

Before Takuya could ask what was going on, Kouichi told him to follow, both of them heading towards the main cafeteria. Takuya immediately spotted Kouji sitting alone at a table, eating his lunch. They rushed over to where he was and sat down. Kouji looked up and asked them what they were doing here.

"I know Takuya does it occasionally, but my own brother skip class?" he said in the same monotonous voice.

"I have Theater Arts, and the teacher wouldn't mind if I was here. Enough about that. Kouji...where is she, and why didn't you tell us?" Kouichi asked.

His brother frowned and said,"Where is who? Tell you what?"

At that moment, they heard someone clear their throat and turned around. Takuya nearly fell out of his seat and Kouichi smiled when they saw who the person was.

"Um, excuse me." Izumi said meekly. Then she looked at Kouichi, and then at Kouji. She looked back and forth at the two of them, completely ignoring Takuya who was trying to say hi, and she raised an eyebrow.

"Hello. My name is Kouichi Kimura. It's really nice to meet you finally." Kouichi shook her hand, still smiling.

Izumi replied slowly,"Hello, Kouichi..._-kun_. I'm Izumi Orimoto. Is he..?" she indicated towards Kouji who had gone back to eating.

Kouichi looked at Kouji, and then back at Izumi. He nodded and replied at the same time,"Yes, he's my brother. My twin brother. Izumi Orimoto...that's a pretty name. Are you by any chance the person Kouji is sponsoring?"

Izumi's eyes widened as she asked,"How did you know?"

"Just a lucky guess." he replied. Izumi sat down next to Kouichi, opposite of Kouji and listened as Kouichi told her about Yamaguchi High School. Takuya sat next to Kouji, in front of Kouichi, occasionally interrupting to say something to Izumi.

Izumi answered some of Kouichi and Takuya's questions, while asking them some as well. She then tried asking Kouji something, but received no reply. Takuya joked saying there was no point in talking to him.

"It's like talking to a wall. You're lucky if you get him to say something. Kouji usually only talks to us and our other two friends." Takuya said, earning a glare from Kouji which Izumi noticed.

The bell suprised them as it rang loud and clear, signaling it was time for next period. Kouichi and Takuya told Izumi it was nice seeing her, and that they would see her later once school ended. Izumi told them it was a pleasure meeting the two. She turned to Kouji who had once again been staring at her. He quickly turned and began walking to his next class, which Izumi happened to have as well, with her trying to keep up.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

Next chapter's going to be REAL interesting. Hopefully. :3 **Note from author**: Violence is _definitely_ not the answer.


	7. The Crack

I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE CHARACTERS EXCEPT FOR THE ONES I MADE UP, NOR THE DIGIMON FRANCHISE. THIS FANFIC WAS MADE FOR PURE PLEASURE.

Violence is not the solution to our problems, yet this story contradicts that statement. :3

**Chapter 7: The Crack**

It was a Sunday morning and Izumi woke up to the twittering of some birds. She stretched her arms, yawning, and after a few seconds she got out of bed. Once she was ready, she walked downstairs and entered the kitchen. No one was inside. Izumi frowned and wondered where Kouji and his grandfather could be. She sat down at the table, tapping her fingers on it. Yuki walked up towards her, wagging her tail rapidly, and nudged her gently.

"You must be hungry." Izumi said to Yuki, while playing with her ears. She searched for the dog food, and once she found it, Izumi fed Yuki her breakfast.

After Yuki finished eating, she barked playfully at Izumi, trying to get her to follow. Izumi decided to follow her, and found herself at the door with Yuki. The dog with snow-white fur placed a paw on the door, and barked once. The blonde girl understood she wanted to go outside,and opened the door for Yuki, following her as she ran outside.

Izumi began playing with Yuki on the grass, with Yuki rolling on it, and Izumi trying to roll her to different places. The dog at some times would try to knock Izumi over, playfully of course. It was all a game to Yuki, and Izumi decided to play it. At one point, Yuki almost managed to knock Izumi over, but Izumi managed to dodge the dog's maneuver. She was about to say something to Yuki when Izumi heard the sound of something striking, coming from behind the house.

She walked accross the grass, going to the back, with Yuki following. When she arrived, she saw two figures moving rapidly in the grass. One of them was shorter than the other, but only by a few inches, and was trying to hit the taller figure with something that looked like a wooden pole. However, the taller figure managed to block the shorter figure's attack with its own wooden pole. They were too busy doing this to each other, that they didn't see Izumi come to where they were. She knew what they were doing the minute she saw them.

_They must have woken up really early in order to train._ she thought as she watched Kouji try to knock over his grandfather. He almost suceeded, until he noticed Izumi was watching, and lost focus. Mr. Minamoto senior spotted an opening, and did a maneuver unfamiliar to Izumi, knocking Kouji over.

The elder man took off the helmet he was wearing and walked over to where Izumi was. Izumi watched as Kouji got up and took off his helmet. She then heard his grandfather say something to her.

"We decided not to wake you up since it was your first day yesterday at school. Normally, Kouji and I would wake up very early in order to train all day. We take a few breaks every now and then." he told her.

"That was amazing. What you just did." Izumi pointed out.

"Hmph. That was a basic maneuver. Sensei just caught me off guard." Kouji said suddenly. He walked past the two of them, and headed inside the house.

Izumi frowned at what he said, but held back her tongue. Kouji's grandfather told her not to mind him.

"He's probably just tired from what we've done so far." he said, and told Izumi that it was time for them to rest. "You probably want some breakfast." he said cheerfully. Izumi was about to reply no when her stomach betrayed her and made a loud grumbling noise. Mr. Minamoto senior laughed and walked towards the house. Izumi blushed slightly, but soon followed after him.

When they were inside, Kouji's grandfather seemed to remember something. He told her,"You can call me Sensei if you want, instead of Mr. Minamoto. That's my son now." he chuckled at the thought. Izumi nodded, and remembered that piece of information. Sensei then told her to fetch Kouji to come and eat breakfast.

She nodded, and headed upstairs. Izumi walked towards Kouji's room and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, she heard footsteps, and saw as the door opened slightly.

"What?" he asked her.

"Uh, Sensei made breakfast." Izumi said quickly, stumbling over her words.

"I'm not hungry." Kouji replied and was about to close the door, when Izumi stopped it with her hand.

"He told me you've been up since early in the morning. If you're going back to train you should eat something at least." she said to him.

Kouji didn't reply for a bit, but then he repeated,"I said I wasn't hungry." However, his stomach seemed to have other thoughts. Izumi raised an eyebrow looking at him.

He finally replied,"I'll come down there in a few minutes. In the meantime, you should go and eat something if you want to train as well."

Before she could respond, he shut the door in her face. Izumi sighed and walked downstairs. When she arrived at the kitchen, she repeated what Kouji had said to her future martial arts teacher. Sensei nodded understandingly, and then told her to eat. While she ate, Izumi wondered when Kouji would come downstairs to eat himself.

_He said in a few minutes, but he's not here._ she thought, but continued eating.

Soon, both her and sensei were done with their breakfast. It was then that he told her that he had to go somewhere and would be back in a few hours.

"If it's going to be three of us eating at this table, we'll need plenty of food. While I'm gone, tell Kouji again to come down and eat his breakfast. When I come back, we'll be training once more." he said. Izumi nodded and agreed she would.

After he left, Izumi picked up the plates that were empty, and washed them. Then she then noticed Kouji's plate and looked upstairs. Izumi frowned, and decided to go get him. As she headed to his room for a second time, she remembered yesterday's events after lunch.

Izumi had tried asking Kouji about his brother and the other person that was at the table during lunch, but he wouldn't reply. She gave up and decided to wait until after school. Once the bell rang, she followed Kouji to the main gates of Yamaguchi High School, and sure enough, Kouichi and the other person (who she found out was named Takuya) were there.

There were also two other people waiting outside. One of them appeared to be older than most of them, and he was tall and plump. The second person was shorter than the others with brown hair, and he appeared to be a few years younger. The two introduced themselves as Junpei and Tomoki. Izumi introduced herself and couldn't help but notice the one named Junpei would cling onto every word she said, the same as Takuya did. An idea pertaining to it emerged in her mind, but she didn't voice it aloud.

Like Kouichi and Takuya, Junpei and Tomoki were interested to know about where Izumi came from. She once again had to be vague in her answers, being careful not to let them know she was from an orphanage. They, like Kouichi and Takuya, were interested in what she had to say, and commented several times about her. At one point, when Izumi was explaining something to them Kouji interrupted with brief news that his grandfather was here to pick them up. Izumi waved to the young men as the car she was in drove away.

"I see you met Kouji's brother and friends." his grandfather remarked when he saw Izumi waving at them. Izumi nodded and said they were all really nice. Then she had thought Kouji had said something, but wasn't quite sure.

Izumi arrived at the door and like before, knocked loud and clearly. This time the door opened much quicker and she found herself a few inches away from Kouji's face. Careful that she wouldn't blush on accident, Izumi backed away slightly and told Kouji that his grandfather had left to buy groceries. She then said to him his breakfast was getting cold and that he should go eat. Kouji finally said 'okay' and followed Izumi to the kitchen. She watched him eat his food and once he was done, Izumi took the plate and washed it until it was spotless.

"Soo..." Izumi began when Kouji was still quiet after eating breakfast. He looked at her without replying, rather waiting for her to continue.

"Well, I'm here in Japan now. It's very different from anything I could imagine. Of course you must be used to it since you lived here your entire life." she rambled on, noticing the flaws in her speech.

Izumi continued,"So what do you like to do for fun? Besides doing kendo and other martial arts." she asked, waiting for him to reply.

"Why do you want to know?" Kouji replied back with a short, biting edge and tone. The question suprised her.

"Uh well, aren't we supposed to tell each other about our favorite stuff, and share our culture for this program we're in?" Izumi said.

"Forget it." he said shortly and got up from the table. As he walked towards the stairs, Izumi stopped him.

"Hey, wait! What did I say?" she asked as she got up herself and followed him.

She was about to follow him inside his room, when he quickly turned around and shut the door in her face, startling her. Izumi stood there for a few seconds, staring at the door, her mind trying to organize itself. Then, she knocked on the door for the third time. Kouji didn't answer the door. Frustrated, Izumi kicked at the door, hurting her foot in the process. She was startled again when Kouji opened the door, and saw that he was glaring at her in fury. His blue eyes reminded herof a clear blue sky in the winter, a winter she would never forget...

"What do you want?" he said in a tone that made a chill go up her spine and distracted her from the memory she recalled.

"I..." she began, but stopped. Izumi wasn't sure what to say next.

"Well if you're not going to say anything..." Kouji began closing the door, but Izumi stuck her foot in it.

"Can I come in?" she asked innocently. Kouji's glare disappeared for a few seconds, as his mind tried to figure out what to do. Then he sighed, and nodded. He closed the door once she was inside.

Izumi sat down on an extra chair, and watched Kouji as he went to sit down on his bed. They sat there for what seemed an eternity, until she asked him, "Are you mad at me?"

"What?"

She repeated the question and added,"You seem mad." her voice was a soft piano.

"I'm..." Kouji began loudly but then paused. He lowered his voiced and continued,"I'm not mad."

Izumi took a deep breath and then let it out. She said,"Look I'm sorry if I sounded nosy. It's just that I see you hardly ever talk, even to your friends. I just wanted to know more about you and this place."

"And what does it matter to you if I don't talk?" Kouji asked her in a demanding voice.

She frowned and looked at him straight in the eye. "Nothing! Why are you acting so rude?"

"Rude?" he inquired.

"Yes, rude! You shut the door in my face!" Izumi exclaimed. Her mind sensed the escalating in their voices as they replied to each other.

"You shouldn't have been walking behind me!" he shouted.

"Well I was only walking behind you because you walked away from what I was saying to you!" Izumi had her hands clenched as she said this.

Kouji remained silent. Then he said in a normal voice,"Well I didn't ask for an American to come to where I was, just so we could chat about our likes, dislikes, etc. Not only that, they sent me a girl to look after."

"What do you mean by that?" Izumi had lowered her voice as well, but it was sharp-edged. Her eyes narrowed as she waited for him to reply.

"I mean I didn't ask for this! Kouichi made me sign up for this thing in the first place! You shouldn't have expected something from me. I'm the worst person for the job." Kouji scowled.

"How would you know if you are if you haven't even tried? There was probably a good reason as to why your brother signed you up!" Izumi's voice began getting louder again.

"And what is that?" Kouji asked, with his hands clenched as well. They were turning into a pale color.

"Oh I don't know, maybe because you don't talk with anybody! I've only been here for about 2 days, and I've realized you're the least sociable person I've ever met!" Izumi shouted.

Kouji shouted back,"Glad you finally noticed it!"

Izumi bit her tongue by accident, but ignored the pain. Her temper had broke within a few minutes. "You..." she began, her face full of hate.

"What is it?" Kouji smirked, slightly amused by her mood change.

She unleashed her anger on him. "You're the most ignorant, noncaring, rudest person I've ever met... ever!" Izumi then slapped Kouji across the face, leaving a bright red mark on his face. She then realized what she had done and tried to apologize.

"I-" she began, but her apology fell apart when she felt something sting her cheek. Kouji had slapped her back, caught up in his own fury. She was deeply suprised and in shock, but her fury was stronger.

All sense lost, she unleashed one of her karate maneuvers onto Kouji, resulting in a very hard punch on the other side of his face. She tried to punch him again, but he grabbed her arm, and bended it back, causing her to cry out in pain. Then he pushed her up against a wall, still not letting go of her arm.

"Let go of m-" Izumi began, but her words were cut off by a slap across her other cheek. This caused her to bite her tongue even harder on accident, and blood appeared, making a small mess. Izumi turned her face and spit out trying to speak, but Kouji pressed her arm farther back, resulting in another scream of pain.

Izumi couldn't move nor do anything to defend herself in case he tried anything. All she could do was give him her darkest look, full of loathing. Then Kouji spoke.

"And you expect to train with me? You can't even get yourself out of this situation...Yankee." Kouji said in a blood chilling voice. Izumi kept looking at him darkly, but then gave up, and collapsed.

Kouji looked at her in disdain, and let go of her, causing her to drop to the floor. He left her there, leaving the room, and closed the door behind him. Kouji walked outside to the field full of flowers, and looked up at the sky, trying to calm his thoughts.

"Idiot." he muttered, and then looked down at the flowers at his feet.

Kouji suddenly felt the wind bite at his face,trying to cut him down. In the end he managed to resist, but ended up crushing some of the flowers. Maybe it was just the trick of the sunlight as the sun set, but as he looked at them, he thought he could detect the color of blood among the flowers.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

I bet you didn't expect that...okay...so maybe you might have. More violence is sure to come! Looks like they're off to a great start. :3


	8. An Idea

This update isn't much I know, but this is as far as I can get. Next chapter will have more interesting things to come. Also, I've been thinking about it, and I might do a doujinshi to go along with the story, for a more visual represantation. (Also so I can add more comedy and drama) Hopefully I'll be able to start on that this Spring Break along with working on my other fics, drawings, hw, etc.

I do not own the Digimon Franchise or the characters except my own.

Please R NO FLAMES!

**Chapter 8: An Idea**

When Hiroshi Minamoto -Sensei- arrived at his home, he was suprised to see Kouji at the door steps, sitting down. He was looking down at his feet and only glanced up when he noticed his grandfather arrive. Mr. Minamoto senior asked Kouji why he was outside, but Kouji simply muttered a vague response and opened the door for his grandfather as he came in with some groceries.

"Where's Izumi-san?" Kouji's grandfather placed the groceries on the table in the kitchen. Kouji remained silent and helped him take out the items.

Puzzled by Kouji's continous ignorance, he decided to find out for himself. He left Kouji to unpack the groceries and headed upstairs to where the bedrooms were. As Mr. Minamoto walked down the hallway, he could feel the tense atmosphere in his house.

_Did something happen while I was away?_ he wondered, arriving at Izumi's door. Knocking softly, he called out her name. He heard a soft rustle coming from the room, and footsteps approaching the door. Mr. Minamoto stepped back a few centimeters as the door opened.

Izumi had a silent look on her face as she saw Kouji's grandfather in front of her. She quickly changed it and greeted him cheerfully. "Hello."

"It sure was silent when I came here. Is everything okay?" he asked her, and noticed her expression froze suddenly, but quickly turned back to its cheery self.

She replied,"Everything's fine. I was resting for a bit and working on my homework as well. Do you need any help with the groceries?"

Mr. Minamoto shook his head."Kouji is down there working on it." Once again he noticed something about Izumi. He saw her stiffen slightly, but then resume her normal position.

"Ok." she said. Mr. Minamoto then told her if she wanted to start training outside. He was suprised when she shook her head and said maybe another time.

"I have to catch up on this schoolwork, but thank you for offering." Izumi then closed the door and went to work on her assignments.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

Dinner was nerve-breaking for Izumi. While she ate, she could feel Kouji's burning gaze on her and tried her best to avoid it. After the incident between her and Kouji she had turned into a meek bunny. She knew that things had not started out well and felt it was her responsibilty to fix the problem. But would Kouji even listen to her after what had happened?

_Only one way to find out._ The nervous thought ran through her mind as she finished swallowing the last bits of her meal.

Being anti-social as usual, Kouji left Izumi and Sensei, walking upstairs towards his room. Sensei didn't see, but as Kouji walked past her, he passed on a scathing look. Izumi then knew this wasn't going to be as easy as she thought.

Politely, she excused herself from the table and went to her room first, planning out what she would say to the Lonewolf. When she felt confident enough, Izumi exited her room and arrived at Kouji's door. She knocked slowly at first. Just when she thought he wouldn't reply, the door opened. Kouji froze and didn't say anything. The blonde girl felt her confidence evaporate into thin air, as the raven-haired boy glared at her. His fury was greater than it had been at the dinner table.

Izumi only said two words before she rushed back to her room. "I'm sorry!" a few strands of her hair briefly touched Kouji's cheek and then were gone.

He stood there for several minutes, trying to comprehend what had just happened.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

Kouji laid in his bed and stared at the ceiling. His right hand was placed over his right cheek, as he let his thoughts run wild inside his mind. He was puzzled by certain things that had happened so far. One of them was that Izumi didn't tell Sensei about the incident while he was away. Kouji knew that if she had told Sensei, he would be in serious trouble. However, Izumi had remained silent.

Then, after dinner, Kouji opened the door to find her in front of him. Immediately, Kouji glared at her angrily and watched as she ran back to her room.

_"I'm sorry!"_ Izumi had cried out. Sorry, sorry for what? Kouji had some ideas in mind, but he still wasn't sure. Then, a familiar voice spoke.

_You know why she said it, or should._ His conscience whispered.

_No, I don't._ He contradicted. Kouji waited a few minutes, but received no reply from the other end. His conscience was fighting a never ending war, but never won a battle. The Lonewolf had shut away this part for many years and thought it would never come back. Until now.

"I wonder why she didn't tell him." he muttered.

_Perhaps because you nearly scared her to death._ The voice had returned. _How couldn't you? _

He scowled to himself but didn't answer the voice in his head.

Yet he knew the voice was right in some way. He wasn't exactly the friendliest person you could meet but sometimes when he was too angry and without realizing it, Kouji frightened others.

_Well, what should I do?_ Kouji asked, feeling stupid already for asking himsef for advice.

_Don't tell me you don't know._ His conscience replied in a you-should-know-already tone.

_No, no way. Never._

_Suit yourself, but you're not getting off to a great start with your sponsoree. _The voice soon left, leaving Kouji to himself and his thoughts.

"Damn it." he muttered under his breath and got up from bed.

_Here goes nothing._ Kouji left his room and headed towards the guest bedroom. After a few minutes of hesitation, he knocked on the door.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

Izumi was startled when she opened the door to find the Lonewolf in front of her.

"Um..." she mumbled. Kouji didn't look at her for a few seconds. Then...

"Er, how's your arm?" he inquired. Izumi hadn't bothered to bandage it up, thinking she might arouse suspicion from Kouji's grandfather.

"Erm...better." Izumi muttered back.

Kouji nodded and stayed silent. He then found himself looking at Izumi and her golden strands of hair, the same ones that touched his cheek. After a few more minutes, trying to forget what he just remembered, (feeling like an idiot yet again) he asked if she had received all of her assignments.

"Um, yes." the blonde replied.

The raven-haired young man nodded again and then turned around to leave, not sure how much longer he could stand being close to her. The thought irritated him ferociously.

"Uh, wait!" Izumi cried out.

He stopped and wondered what she was going to say, the irritation clinging onto him as he waited.

"I'm sorry...again. I'm sorry for calling you ignorant, and rude and I'm sorry for trying to get you to talk. This is just kind of hard for me. I guess you don't like talking a lot with others but I was really hoping to learn more about you and your culture. So..yeah." Izumi stumbled a bit over her last few words, but managed to say it.

"Don't." she heard Kouji speak softly.

"What?"

Kouji replied,"You don't have to be sorry." After that, he left Izumi to figure out what he meant by his words.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

That night, Izumi laid in bed and looked up as she thought about the day's events.

_I...I think he was trying to apologize._ Izumi spoke in her mind.

_Of course he was. Why else would he have knocked on your door?_ her conscience commented.

_Maybe...maybe the reason he acts so cold towards others is because he doesn't know how to communicate with them,_ Izumi concluded. _If he had some help with that, then maybe he wouldn't be so cruel and he'd get along with others._

_Uh oh. I sense another plan arriving._

_And what do you mean by that?_ she asked.

_Nothing, nothing at all._ Her conscience replied.

_Well, he needs help and I'll be the one to help him!_ Izumi exclaimed.

Izumi's conscience snickered, _Sure, if he's willing for you to help._


	9. Threat! The Kouji Minamoto Fanclub

Um...I should be doing homework instead of this, but I was distracted. :3

First day back at school from Spring Break wasn't actually too bad. Not as much homework as I expected from Geometry, a surprise. Anyway, the story (to me) finally seems to have some plot stuff going on. For you Kozumi fans, don't worry all that mushy stuff will come later on. If Kouji is willing to let me write it. _Haha._

**Kouji**: You're an evil, evil girl

**Whitey**: Look who's talking!

-clears throat- Thanks guys for the review, they really keep me going.

Blah blah, copyright stuff. I don't own any of this, etc

Now, on to the story!

_otaku_-term used to refer to people with obsessive interests

**Chapter 9: Threat! The Kouji Minamoto Fanclub**

Izumi looked at herself in the mirror she had found in her room. She was wearing her school uniform that Kouji had gotten for her. (much to his annoyance) It felt strange wearing it, but she knew she would become accustomed to it. She then picked up her school bag that rested on top of her bed, and checked to make sure everything was in place. Although she had went with Kouji to school the past week, today felt like her real first day. Today, she would start helping the Lonewolf break out of his shell.

As Izumi walked downstairs, her nose detected the smell of breakfast coming from the kitchen. She was slightly surprised when she walked into the kitchen and saw Kouji was making the delicious breakfast. However, Izumi couldn't stop the grin that came to her lips when she saw he was wearing an apron. It didn't last long as Kouji turned and glared at her with a 'you-better-not-tell-anyone-you-saw-me-wearing-this' look. Sensei was unaware of what was going on, greeting Izumi and commenting that she looked lovely in her new uniform.

"Doesn't she Kouji?" he smiled as he looked at his grandson.

Kouji muttered a vague response and didn't turn around to face Izumi. She sighed inwardly, wondering what he was thinking.

Before they knew it, the two of them were standing in front of the high school, Sensei leaving them. They still had time before school started so Izumi asked Kouji where his brother and friends were.

"Who knows?" the Lonewolf replied in an uninterested voice, not looking at her. Izumi then noticed his eyes narrow as a large group of girls approached them. She frowned in puzzlement, wondering what was going on.

The group stopped a few feet away and stared. Then, one of the girls stepped forward. She had wavy, dark-brown hair and dark, sparkling eyes. Izumi saw that she had an unpleased expression on her face. Not wanting to appear rude, she greeted the girl politely.

The girl ignored her greeting and asked in a loud voice that gathered everyone's attention,"You are Orimoto Izumi, the exchange student I presume?"

Izumi nodded in reply. The girl scanned her from top to bottom, saying nothing. Kouji's dark expression broke for a bit as he also looked at the girl in puzzlement.

Then the girl said,"Well it was a pleasure meeting you Izumi-chan! I'm Fujita Hanachi." Izumi was even more puzzled when she saw the girl's expression change to a more cheerful one.

"Same to you, Kouji-kun!" the entire group greeted to Kouji who didn't reply.

When the group had left, Kouji said aloud,"What's up with them?" It wasn't necessarily directed at Izumi, but she too wondered the same.

Then she asked him,"Are they companions of yours, Kouji?"

Kouji actually turned to look at her when she spoke, this time with a 'you're kidding' look.

He answered,"Not in a millenia," and began heading inside the school building with Izumi following.

As she did, an unknown chill ran up her spine, leaving her to think about his words.

**English Class 2A**

"I hope everyone did their assignment last night because the information on there is going on your final." the teacher announced to the class over the rustling of papers.

The class groaned in reply, but they had finished their work. Well, _almost _everyone.

"Damn it! Where is it?!" Takuya searched through his papers frantically. On his left, the Lonewolf rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath.

Izumi, the new student looked at him in interest (Kouji, not Takuya) still wondering what was running through his head, the plan going through its steps in her mind. However, Takuya mistook her intentions and started asking for help on the late assignment he had just found.

She was slightly annoyed but began helping him. Kouji sideglanced and raised an eyebrow at the scenario but did not comment. Sitting in front of Izumi, his twin brother caught Kouji's glance and a grin appeared on his face. The Lonewolf glared at Kouichi when he noticed the grin, but quickly turned his attention back to the front when the teacher began speaking to the class.

"Since we are reading one his works and are discussing the Victorian Era, everyone is to do a project on a topic that relates to this era." the teacher said as she passed out packets that had requirements for the project. Once more, the class replied in a negative tone as they received the information packets.

The teacher continued,"This time you are allowed to work with a partner. However...I would suggest picking a partner that is willing to do the work, for both of your grades depend on what you and your partner did or did not do. Once you have your partner, pick a topic out of the ones listed in your packet and read the front for what you have to do for your project." She went on, explaining to the class and then when class was over, she left them.

During the small break between classes, everyone moved around and began picking partners for their project.

"Kouji?" Takuya turned to his left, facing him.

The raven-haired answered shortly,"No."

"What? No?" the brunnette looked at him confused.

"Both of us know you don't do any of the work when it comes to projects...actually any work involved, and she said this is counting as a test grade. I'm not flunking out on this one." Kouji replied scathingly.

"Hmm...good thing you said that then." his brother Kouichi appeared suddenly.

"What do you mean by that?" his younger brother inquired.

Kouichi indicated behind him,"You should work with Izumi. That way you'll be more interactive. Plus, you won't have to worry about failing. I heard that she was a top student in her classes."

Kouji merely looked at him darkly, without reply.

Takuya then exclaimed,"Then who am I working with?"

"I'll work with you, but don't expect to slack off...or else." the last two words caused an icy chill to run up Takuya's spine. He knew Kouji was always in an angry mood, but when Kouichi was mad...it was worse.

The older twin motioned to Kouji to go towards Izumi and then went on talking to Takuya, making a plan on what they would do for their project. Not wanting to look like an idiot just standing there, Kouji walked towards Izumi.

He gently tapped her on the shoulder, startling her. She swiftly turned around and greeted him.

"Um..." Kouji began, not being able to form any words.

"Yes?" she asked and glanced around the room, immediately knowing what he wanted. "Oh, you..want to be partners for the um, project?"

She thought she could detect a 'yes' from his low reply.

"Allright, so what do you want to do?"

As they were discussing, someone else watched them from a distance.

"Nee, Hanachi-chan what do you want to do for our project?" her partner asked. She was a short dark-haired girl named Haruki Mei and Hanachi's long time friend.

Hanachi was too busy looking at Izumi and Kouji to listen. Inside, her mind was forming thoughts.

_Who does she think she is, talking to him?_ she thought angrily as Izumi was pointing out something to Kouji on the packet.

"Hanachi-chan!" she was interrupted when Mei shouted.

"What?"

Mei told her,"If you keep watching, they might notice. Look, can't we talk about it later with the rest of the club and then decide about it?"

Hanachi sighed, frustrated, and then nodded. "You're right, we'll discuss it later. Still, I don't like that Orimoto girl. We'll have to watch her carefully and make sure she doesn't do anything weird. If she starts getting thoughts, she'll spread them around and soon all the girls will think they can do as the please. It's a danger to us and to our prince."

"Shh, not so loudly." Mei warned her, indicating to the rest of the class.

Lowering her voice, Hanachi said,"I don't know what's her deal, but we'll end it soon enough. She's either going to be one of us, or... one of us."

"What if she doesn't want to be one of us?" Mei asked.

Hanachi didn't reply at first but then said slowly,"Oh, she'll want to be one, trust me. Because the last person who said no...well, things didn't turn out so great for her."

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Izumi-chan, over here!" Takuya shouted loudly over the rest of the students' chatter.

The blonde girl spotted him sitting at a table eating his lunch. On his two sides were Kouji and his brother Kouichi. She walked over to their table and sat in front of them.

"Where are your other friends...um Junpei and Tomoki?" she asked as she began eating her lunch.

"They'll get here soon enough." Kouichi replied for Takuya.

A brief, akward silence followed after his words. Takuya, their usual spokesperson was munching quietly on his meal. Izumi noticed that Kouji glanced and raised an eyebrow at his silence, but didn't break it. Meanwhile, Kouichi appeared to have finished his lunch and was reading a book. Izumi recognized the book as the one they had to read for their English class and commented on it.

"Oh no, she got him started." Takuya complained but got silent after Kouichi looked at him.

However, as Kouichi began speaking, his brother interrupted. "How can you like that book?"

"It's a good book." he replied.

"Hmmph." Takuya said, but continued eating his lunch.

"What's wrong with it?" Izumi asked.

Surprised by her sudden remark, he remained silent. A few more seconds passed by before Takuya couldn't take it anymore. He took a deep breath and then let it out, preparing for his argumentive speech.

"If it takes that guy that many pages to get a point across, then he must be on some kind of medicine." Takuya simply said. "And not the good kind."

Kouji rolled his eyes while his brother sighed. However, Izumi seemed to think this was hilarious. She placed a hand over her mouth, while partially covering her face and tried not to laugh.

"Wow, someone actually thought you were funny." Kouji said sarcastically.

This only made Izumi break down laughing.

"Izumi-chan?" Kouichi began.

Suddenly realizing they were watching her, she stopped laughing. She continued eating her lunch in silence., but couldn't help but feel a great relief in her mind.

_I can actually laugh?_

_That...was weird._ Kouji thought as the three boys went back to eating.

Kouichi broke the silence this time by speaking to Kouji.

"I heard that you had another encounter with them."

Takuya almost choked on his food as he chortled. Kouji ignored him and nodded.

Wiping the mess off his face, Takuya asked,"So, what they do? Squeal?"

"Nah, they talked to..." Kouji stopped as he saw Izumi was listening to them.

"Huh?" she formed a puzzled face.

"Kouji's fan club. Hmmph, _otaku_. You met them this morning I guess. Right Kouji?" Takuya spoke.

"Minamoto-san...has a fanclub?" Izumi's confused expression deepened.

"Yeah, they're a bunch of weirdos. I mean...what do they see in him?" Takuya snickered.

Kouichi explained,"We're not sure when it started, but a group of girls formed the club and their members have increased since then. I know some of them from class but..."

"But they're waay too obsessed with this guy over here, and scary. You see, Kouji is the most popular liked guy in the school -some girl thing-, so when there's a girl who likes him, they find out and force her to join the club. Some rule they follow. They can't exactly _not_ join." Takuya told Izumi.

"Well, last year there was a girl who said no, but I heard from an upperclassman that something happened to her and she transferred to another school. In tears." Kouichi said. Takuya shivered, but it wasn't cold.

"That's. Interesting." Izumi answered.

"Like I said, _otaku_. We can't leave Kouji by himself anywhere at school, otherwise they might kidnap him and take him to their headquarters. Who knows what they'll do to him." Izumi couldn't tell if Takuya was joking or not.

"So are any of them in our class?" Izumi asked curiously.

Kouichi replied,"Yeah. Actually in our English class we have the President and Vice-President of the um, club. Fujita Hanachi-san and Haruki Mei-san."

"One of the reasons I hate English." Kouji suddenly remarked.

Before they could say more, the bell rang, indicating the end of lunch.

"Well if any of them come to you to join Izumi-chan, _run_. We'll protect you!" Takuya joked at the last part.

Kouichi then said seriously,"I would avoid them if I were you. They're not exactly the nicest people."

"Obsessed, weird, mean. Sounds like a good combination for those who would fall for Kou-ow!" Takuya rubbed his arm and muttered. Kouji pulled his elbow back and continued walking.

"Anyway...I wonder where Junpei and Tomoki are. They didn't show up for lunch after all." Kouichi remarked. The other two boys wondered the same and talked about it on their way to class.

Meanwhile, Izumi was wondering about what Kouichi said earlier.

_I wonder what happened to that girl who refused to join their club?_ She also decided to follow Kouichi's advice. From what Takuya and him told her, meeting them wouldn't be the best idea.

_Still, most popular liked boy in the school? That was a surprise,_ Izumi thought.

_Sure it was. _Another voice replied softly before quickly leaving.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

**Author's note**: For those of you that might have questions, on certain days, the group has the same lunch while on other days they have different lunches. Same with classes. As for Junpei and Tomoki...read on to find out! ;D

Please Review but without the flaming.


	10. Emergency Meeting

Well...I guess I could go on about how busy I was that I couldn't update on this story and how my mind couldn't come up with any ideas for the plot. (I really need to work on that) I could also go on about how I was able to update some other fanfics of mine and that I wasn't able to make time for this one. But...I'm about to go to karate so I don't have time. T-T I tried to make this chapter as long as I could but as I just mentioned I don't/didn't have time. I promise to make the next chapter long however! ;D Please read and review this lovely fanfic that will hopefully become suspenseful, humorous, romantic, yaadee yadee yah!

Now that I know what it is called (took me long enough)...**Disclaimer**: I obviously don't own Digimon Frontier or its characters. If I did I would be gloating about it and its awsomeness (JK about gloating but it is pretty awsome :P)

And now I present to you Chapter ten!

**Chapter 10: Emergency Meeting**

"Um, Junpei-senpai are you sure we should do this?" a timid boyish voice asked. Tomoki Himi looked nervous as he followed his companion down the hallway.

"Relax kid, trust me on this. Besides, some skipping will do you good." Junpei Shibayama smirked at his companion.

Tomoki sighed and wished he carried the same air of confidence his older friend did. Still, he could not believe he agreed to skip class again. The first time Junpei practically dragged him out of his seat and out the door supposedly heading for the nurse's room. He remembered the teacher staring at him with a confused expression on her face and the class trying hard not to laugh.

This time Junpei acted his role of a messenger notifying the teacher that one of the counselors sent for Tomoki. Ms. Miyano, the newest and inexperienced teacher at Yamaguchi High School began to protest at Junpei for interrupting her lecture but he had swiftly pulled out a note from his uniform's pocket and showed it to her. Tomoki glanced nervously at Junpei who merely shrugged as the teacher examined the note. Then with a sigh the teacher called out Tomoki's name and let him go with Junpei.

"Where are we going this time?" Tomoki finally asked.

"Can't tell you squirt. It's a surprise." the older brunette grinned.

The younger teenager said no more as the two of them moved at a normal pace. Surprisingly the hallway they went through was not being monitored, a good sign for them. Seeing this, Junpei moved at an even faster pace to their destination. Tomoki hurried to keep up with him without complaint. He almost crashed into Junpei when he suddenly stopped at a door.

"W-w-wait a minute...we're going into the faculty's lounge? Junpei-senpai we can't! It's off limits to students!" Tomoki spluttered. He briefly glanced left and right down the hallways to check for anyone else wandering and to his relief there was none.

Junpei chortled at the frantic teenager. "Look I know you happened to be so smart that you were moved to high school with the rest of us older kids. So its time you act like one."

"I thought that included being responsible and going to class." Tomoki muttered.

"Hah, yeah right! And listen to boring lectures for almost an hour?! Come on shorty!" Junpei grabbed Tomoki's arm and opened the door with ease. Tomoki tried exiting the door but Junpei held onto his arm tightly.

The first thing Tomoki noticed was a few potted plants sitting in the corners and a copier currently being occupied. Tomoki held his breath as he noticed they weren't alone in the room. Junpei didn't bother to be stealthy and sneak past the person.

"Morning Chiyo-san." he said cheerfully and the older woman turned around at the sound of his voice. Chiyo appeared to be around her mid-thirties Tomoki guessed as he waited for her to shout at them and report them to the office.

Chiyo had a bored expression on her face but it seemed to brighten at the sign of the two teenagers. She took a sip from the mug she held in her right hand and spoke.

"Morning to you too. So who is your friend there, Shibayama-kun?" Chiyo's voice surprisingly sounded younger than her appearence indicated.

Junpei moved Tomoki forward so he could face Chiyo. "Newbie to Yamaguchi High. He just got transferred a week ago from the junior high school on account of being a smarty pants. I decided he should have some fun in high school. You know, like they do in America."

The middle-aged woman nodded. "My daughter is an exchange student over there. She told me the classes are much easier and extracurricular activities are classes. I thought about bringing her back worried about her education but she told me she was happy there. I guess that's what's important."

"Suckish." Junpei mumbled to himself and then remembered the reason he was here. "Well you know the drill." he added to Chiyo.

The woman nodded and then turned back to the copier. Tomoki stood still staring at Chiyo with his mouth open until Junpei shook him. He lead Tomoki to another door and then winked.

"Behind this door is the secret of the faculty's lounge. You might have heard some rumors about what lies in this room and some of them might be true. We'll spend our time here until lunch since the teachers come here for their lunch." Junpei announced.

At the sound of his announcement Tomoki forgot about worrying and being caught. He nodded to Junpei and the older student slowly opened the plain white door...

Tomoki stared in shock at the sight that unfolded before him.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Attention, attention! Please rise for your President's arrival!" a young girl's voice cut through the chatter in the classroom. The sound of bells rang as well. The other girls immediately became silent and waited patiently.

Fujita Hanachi walked in imperiously and with the utmost confidence she stood in front of her audience. Lunchtime had arrived and was an escape from the torment distributed fifty minutes for each of the three morning classes. Most students would eagerly head for the lunchroom not so much thinking about the food that awaited them but their friends. (The food was just as bad as the classes themselves, maybe even worse.) However, for the Kouji Minamoto Club's members, lunch was the last thing on their minds when an emergency meeting arose.

It had not taken very long for the news to spread to every member although the meeting had to be held the next day since proper procedures had to be held. (Also Hanachi wanted to be sure the news she heard was real and see for herself. Sometimes the club's members tended to overact.) Now, every member sat properly in their seat and watched their leader as she presented herself.

Hanachi began right off the bat. She did not want to waste too much time since they only had thirty minutes to talk. Their after school meetings could only be held on Thursdays since she was busy the rest of the week. The dark-haired girl walked around the room like a military leader presenting his battle plans to his followers. The members and her right hand girl Mei could sense that Hanachi was not happy. The grim expression on her face only showed the truth.

"All of you know why we are here." Hanachi began. "Our school has received a new addition to the student body and unfortunately that addition seems to be a problem. More than I ever expected."

The club's members held their breath. They began imagining the worst possible outcomes that could happen from the new student's arrival.

"That Orimoto Izumi," Hanachi spat, "she is a foreign exchange student from America. Not only that but her sponsor and caretaker while she is here at Yamaguchi High is none other than our beloved prince Kouji-kun!" Hanachi cried out with fake tears. The members gasped. The situation was worse then they imagined.

"Calm down President Fujita." Vice President Haruki Mei went to Hanachi's side and handed her a tissue. Hanachi blew her nose dramatically and handed the dirty tissue to Mei.

Hanachi took a deep breath and finally seemed relaxed. She spoke again, "I am not sure what to expect from Orimoto Izumi. She is new and her background is unknown to us. But worry not my fellow classmates for I will find out about her. I have the power after all."

The members nodded. Hanachi was daughter of Yamaguchi High's principal, Fujita Ken. If there was anyone who knew anything about the students of the school it was her.

One of the members raised a hand when Hanachi paused and motioned for Mei to hand her another tissue. Hanachi jerked her head and faced the girl. "Yes?"

"Um," the girl hesitated, "what is your plan for this Orimoto girl, Fujita-san?"

At that instant Hanachi pulled out a rolled up piece of paper from one of her uniform's sleeves. She flourished it and the paper opened instantaneously. Hanachi looked at the piece of paper and read the rules of the Kouji Minamoto Club. The club members joined her in unison.

_Rule #1: Kouji Minamoto is the beloved prince and idol of the Kouji Minamoto club. As a member you must idolize him and __only __him._

_Rule #2: Any girl who is infatuated with our beloved prince must immediately be recruited into the club. No outsiders are allowed to have their individual infatuation with Minamoto Kouji-san._

Hanachi stopped reading and the members followed her lead. She rolled up the piece of paper and placed it back inside her sleeve. Then she faced the members.

"Yes, and even though none of us are sure if Orimoto Izumi is infatuated with Kouji-kun there is no doubt she will be. This afternoon Vice President Haruki Mei will extend an invitation for her to come to our club's next meeting. At that meeting we will transform her into a member and then our problems will be solved. That is the simple plan." Hanachi looked into the eyes of each member.

"However..." Fujita Hanachi paused and the members had an idea of what she would say next. "If Orimoto Izumi declines our invitation to the meeting and we cannot convince her to join the emergency plan will be established. I will inform the Kouji Minamoto Emergency Squad to perform their duties and our problem will be solved then. Either way we cannot lose." Hanachi added menancingly at the end. The regular members not part of the squad shivered inwardly, each of them wondering what Hanachi was thinking.

Mei glanced at the clock hanging on the wall opposite from the one she leaned against. They still had a good twenty minutes left. She informed this to Hanachi. The President nodded and then changed moods.

"Very well then. Dismissed!" she shouted cheerfully to the members who began their chattering and left the classroom.

Once everyone except Mei was gone from the classroom, Hanachi relaxed. She groaned and sat down in the teacher's chair.

"Being the President is _such_ hard work." she grumbled. Mei sighed and went to her friend's side. From her bag she took out a blank sheet of paper and folded it into a fan. Then she waved the fan spreading cool air onto Hanachi's face.

_I disagree with that._ Mei added in her thoughts, grateful that Hanachi wasn't psychic.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

Izumi's eyebrows furrowed. She watched other students leave the school and get into their parent's vehicles. Her attention was focused on a redhead who accompanied another girl into her mom's car. The two girls were laughing merrily as the mother chided them and hurried them into her car. For a split second Izumi's expression saddened but she quickly focused as she sideglanced and noticed a girl approach her. It was the same girl who had been standing next to the girl she had met in the morning.

_What was her name again?_ Izumi wondered to herself until the girl spoke timidly.

"Hello, my name is Haruki Mei." the blue-eyed girl bowed politely startling Izumi. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"H-hello." Izumi bowed back too quickly. "I'm Izumi Orimoto. I mean... Orimoto Izumi!" Izumi corrected herself.

The girl smiled. "You met my friend Hanachi-chan earlier today. I know who you are. Well that is to say, your name and that you are an exchange student." she seemed to be just as nervous as Izumi.

"Yes."

"Well, I'm sorry if Hanachi-chan startled you or anything. She's very straightforward and can be nervous while not even showing it. You see...she wanted to invite you to a club meeting this Thursday." Mei continued shyly.

"For the Kouji Minamoto fanclub I'm guessing?" Izumi got the point. Her shyness vanished in an instant replaced by her nerves.

_They want me to join, just as the guys warned me. What should I do? Kouji-san nor the others are here! This is bad!_

"Um, yes." Mei caught on that Izumi expected what she was going to say. She immediately changed her speech. "Well, you must have heard of us. Look, Hanachi-chan just told me to tell you to come this Thursday. They will most likely..._convince_ you to join. I'm leaving you the option of coming." Izumi detected her emphasizing the word 'convince'.

"I don't know...how will I get to Kouji-san's grandfather's home after the meeting?" Izumi tried plotting a way to get herself out of the situation.

Mei told her, "Well I'm sure one of the girls from the club can give you a ride."

Izumi shook her head. "Kouji's grandfather lives far from here. I'm not even sure yet where his house is."

Haruki Mei hadn't expected this and she was certain neither had Hanachi.

_Not good. Hanachi will have my head if I can't get Izumi to come!_ An idea then sprouted in Mei's mind. She noticed Izumi was walking away without saying anything and stopped her.

"Uh, wait! What if you spend the night at my house? I'm sure I can compromise with my mother. Then we go to school the next day and you can go to Kouji's granfather's house then." Mei smiled to herself. She saw an expression appear on Izumi's face and knew she had her.

"I don't know..." Izumi repeated.

"Please Izumi-san. I heard that Minamoto Kouji-san is your sponsor and well..no offense to you or him but he's... a boy. He doesn't seem to talk to you much nor interact with you in any other way. That sure isn't any way to treat an exchange student. Also he hangs out with his groups of friends who of course are male. Wouldn't it be more fun and natural if you hung out with girls your age?" Mei was on a roll.

Izumi replied, "I suppose..." She looked down at her feet and suddenly remembered what Takuya had told her at lunch.

_"Well if any of them come to you to join Izumi-chan, __**run**__. We'll protect you!"_

Takuya could have been serious when he had said that but even still, in her opinion he was simply jealous that Kouji had admirers and not him. Then she recalled what Kouichi had said...

_"I would avoid them if I were you. They're not exactly the nicest people."_

_He could be right and I'm sure Kouichi-san is not jealous of Kouji._ But why should she listen to what any boy had to say? She wasn't a stupid and helpless female. If she spotted trouble she could take of herself.

_I am a high-ranked belt in karate after all._ Izumi thought, feeling confident.

The blonde girl sighed and Mei knew she had fulfilled her duty. "Allright. I'll compromise with Kouji's grandfather as well, though I'm sure he won't mind."

Mei beamed with excitement. "That's great! Well my mom is here. See you Thursday Izumi-san!" She waved to Izumi as she ran to her mother's vehicle.

Izumi waved and smiled weakly as she watched her leave. When Mei was gone she relaxed.

_Oh boy, that was nerve-breaking. Now all I have to figure out is how to get this to Kouji without him getting angry about it. It looks like I'm going to have to put my plan for him on hold until I get this over with._

_If you're lucky he'll only wish you weren't his sponsoree and never speak to you again._ On cue as usual, Izumi's other side spoke up.

_Thanks for the help. He doesn't really speak to me anyway._ Izumi spoke back. She then asked, _So what if I'm not lucky?_

_Hmm...good question._

While Izumi spoke back and forth between her two selves in her head she didn't notice that the very person she was looking for after school was watching her from a hidden spot.

Kouji Minamoto had seen the entire scene play before him. Outside, his expression was fathomless. Inside, he wasn't sure what to think of the encounter. He knew he should have came in and interrupted Mei's meeting with Izumi but he was curious. What would happen to Izumi if she did went to that meeting and went through the initiation the club held? Would she turn into a mindless fanatic and be in constant awe of him? Or would her being from a different place take role at the meeting and cause her to disagree with the club's motives?

The Lonewolf shook his head to clear his mind. Either way, no matter what happened, it wasn't as if it would matter that much to him. He decided to come out of his hiding place so Izumi wouldn't fret about where he had been. As Kouji stepped out from behind the tree Izumi turned around and for a second he thought he detected a hint of a smile. His mind fumbled in that second. However Izumi's expression was plain and blank as he walked towards her and his mind worked clearly once more.

As they waited for his grandfather to arrive Kouji was deep in thought about this. He naturally didn't speak to Izumi when she asked him only once where he had been. Almost like he was on a schedule, Kouji Minamoto acted like he was supposed to.

Quiet and mysterious like an enigma waiting to be solved.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_


	11. ShEjUlEs

In this chapter the secret of the faculty lounge is revealed! Haha, if only at my school the faculty lounge was like this. Well they did have sofas...and they looked kinda comfy...

-_shifty eyes_-

"...MY ENGLISH TEACHER SAID IT WAS OKAY TO GO IN THE LOUNGE! STOP LOOKING AT ME!"

Kouichi: -_sweatdrop_- Well as Whitewolfgirl gets her head back in the game I guess I'll say the **Disclaimer**.

"KOUICHI WHEN DID YOU GET HERE! ZOMG! IS THAT POCKY?!"

Kouichi: "No...NINJA POWERS ACTIVATE! KYA!"

-_Kouji walks in and sweatdrops_-: _What the hell..._ "Um...Kouichi this is my fanfic so why are you reading the disclaimer?"

-_ignored_-

Kouji: Well then...**Whitewolfgirl doesn't own Digimon Frontier or the characters** (meaning me) so get on with the story already!"

Whitewolfgirl: "WHAT? NOOOOO!! TELL ME ITS NOT TRUE!"

Kouji and Kouichi: "...It's not true..?"

Whitewolfgirl: -_glares_- It's a cruel, cruel world. D:

_nani_-what

_oniisan_-older brother

**Chapter 11: ShEjUlEs**

It was better than he had imagined. Tomoki took a few small steps into the mysterious faculty lounge. He gazed at everything around him, his eyes darting back and forth at everything.

"Amazing..." Tomoki whispered.

The room was larger than he expected. Against one of the walls was a large plasma screen television with speakers to match. Three sofas formed a semi-circle to face the TV. In another corner was a mini-arcade with the machines that had the old-school games people still played and some newer games as well. Tomoki being a game maniac almost jumped in excitement at seeing this.

He noticed Junpei had his attention on the buffet that was close to the back wall. Nearby was a counter with machines for drinks, ice cream and other delicious treats. A microwave also rested on the counter and was between the machines and a normal sized fridge.

"Wait...so you mean while we're in the cafeteria eating..whatever the food is, the teachers and other staff are in _here_ with all of _this_?" Tomoki asked Junpei.

"Sad but true. You better enjoy this kid because you and I are the only students in the school that know about this. Oh, you should see the other lounges in the school. I swear I saw one with a mini bowling alley!" Junpei then rushed to the buffet and grabbed a plate putting several items of food on it.

Tomoki shouted, "What are you doing?!"

"Getting some early lunch. Come on and dig in! Don't worry you won't get caught." Junpei grinned and grabbed 5 slices of pizza.

The younger boy just stood at the door with a frown on his face. Junpei stopped what he was doing and sighed, looking at Tomoki.

"Tomoki, I get you a free ticket out of class and bring you here so you can enjoy yourself and now you're going to pass all of this up? Are you going to keep freaking out like a little kid and try to act like a mature teenager at the same time? Seriously, loosen up! I've done this several times and I've never been caught, honestly!"

Tomoki merely crossed his arms and glared at Junpei. "What was that deal with Chiyo-san then?"

Junpei rolled his eyes. "Chiyo-san is my aunt. She's the fun one and she warns me beforehand if anyone is coming and I get away. If I do happen to get caught she helps me get out of the situation. She knows how hard school is on kids and so she helps them enjoy school every once in awhile."

"I..I guess its allright..." Tomoki said this while eyeing the arcade. Unfortunately Junpei noticed this and smirked at the discovery.

"Don't you want to play the games over there? They're the kind you can buy and don't have to pay any money to play the game. And then you can get some food out of the buffet instead of eating that trash the school gives us. You know, just to be even with the teachers. Why should they get this relax during school and we don't?"

The young boy gave up and nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

"Attaboy."

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

_**After Kouji and Izumi had left to go to Sensei's home...**_

"Yo! Junpei, Tomoki-kun!" Takuya shouted at the top of his voice at the sight of his two friends as he waited for his parental unit to arrive at the school. He suddenly seemed to remember the events at lunch and groaned.

--

**Yesterday**

After the previous two days of their strange disappearance, Junpei and Tomoki had joined Takuya and the others at lunch. The fiery brunette was surprised when the two boys claimed they 'weren't hungry' and wondered if they were on a dare. However, he didn't have a chance to question them at lunch when Kouichi interrupted his thoughts to ask about the project they were doing for English.

"I picked Queen Victoria for our research topic." he announced to Takuya.

"You what? Why in the world did you pick her?" Takuya exclaimed. Izumi and Kouji had picked an easy topic, Charles Dickens. He was the author of the book they were reading after all and he knew they would find plenty on him.

"We're studying the _Victorian_ Era, Takuya. It was obviously named after Victoria. She was a distinct figure in society at that time. There's loads of information we can find out about her. Now..about our schedule..." He said the English world schedule and pronounced it **'shejule' **instead of _'skejule'. _Kouichi pulled out a packet of papers, ignoring Takuya's wide-eyed stare.

"**Schedule**...I mean _schedule_?! Since when did we have a schedule?!" Takuya sputtered. He noticed Junpei and Tomoki trying very hard not to burst out laughing. Kouji simply raised an eyebrow at him and Izumi stared at Takuya blankly.

Kouji turned to the second page of the packet and showed Takuya a chart. He pointed at the upper half and it was labeled at the top _Takuya_. "This is what you will do for the project..." Kouichi then turned several pages and pointed at another page, as well as a few other pages. "and this is what I will do."

"_Nani_? Why do _I_ have to do more work than _you_?" Takuya's voice echoed throughout the cafeteria. Luckily for him there wasn't any faculty monitoring lunch. (hmm..wonder where they are, eh?)

Kouji's twin calmly told him, "Everytime you work with my brother for projects, both of you end up receiving failing grades. Kouji's parents and my mom aren't too happy about that so I decided it was time to take responsibility on my brother's behalf." Kouichi muttered afterwards, "Also because it took him _this_ long to refuse being Takuya's project partner..."

"What was that _oniisan_?" Kouji spoke suddenly. He raised an eyebrow at his brother this time.

"Oh, nothing!" Kouichi grinned effortlessly to hide his mistake. He then turned around to speak to Takuya again. "Also your mom probably gets onto you about your grades. So think of this as me helping you get a good grade. You should make up for all the slacking off you did on your previous projects. _Got it_?"

Takuya wasn't quite sure but he thought he noticed Kouichi's eyes darken to a black. He shivered inwardly and gulped. "Got it." he said aloud.

"Good. So here, take a look at this..." Kouichi then appeared to be cheerful again in Takuya's point of view.

--

"Sometimes...sometimes Kouichi freaks me out." Takuya muttered to himself as his two friends arrived by his side.

"So what have you two been up to?" Takuya finally inquired the two and within a few minutes he was informed of the reason behind Junpei and Tomoki's mysterious disappearances. They promised him that next time he could join in on their adventure.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"So how was school?" Kouji's grandfather, Sensei, asked when Kouji and Izumi were at the house eating dinner. Quickly, so she didn't appear to be negecting her kitchen duties, Izumi prepared a delicious meal for the two of them.

Kouji predictably did not reply. Izumi didn't want an akward silence to be held between them so she spoke up.

"Kouji-san and I are working on a project for English. We might have to go to the library soon for some research. I also got to talk some more with his brother and his friends." Izumi attempted to smile true but failed miserably. She sideglanced nervously, wondering if Kouji was mad at her for speaking.

He showed no indication that he heard what she said. On the other hand Sensei seemed to be interested in her conversation.

"Oh? Well I would gladly take you if I could but I'm still strong enough to work for a living. Maybe you can go the library alltogether with the others and stay over at their house...I suppose it could work out." Izumi understood what he was thinking. The idea of a girl staying over at a guy's house seemed alien.

Then, at the words 'stay over', Izumi remembered her encounter with Haruki Mei. She felt nervous but knew she had to ask.

"Um, Sensei?" Izumi began. Kouji's grandfather stopped muttering to himself and payed full attention to her. Kouji sensed her nervousness and perked up, inconspicuously of course.

"Yes, Izumi-chan?"

Izumi stumbled over her first few words but then was able to speak clearly. "I-I also met some other people at school. Haruki Mei, a girl at the school invited me to sleep over at her house after going to a club meeting for the club she is in. I figured it would be difficult for me to be picked up after the meeting since this house is far away from the school and it would be late after the meeting. So I was wondering if I could go to the meeting on Thursday and stay at Haruki Mei-san's house."

She added,"We're coming back to school the next day of course! And then-"

Sensei cut her off. "Allright, you can go. You didn't have to ask though." He smiled.

"Th-thank you, Sensei!" Izumi stuttered and stood up from her chair to bow.

"Not at all. You should enjoy your experience here in Japan. School takes up most of your time and that wouldn't be fun at all only going to school and doing nothing of interest. That reminds me...well your mother would worry about it..." Sensei looked at Kouji when he said this. "but how about at the end of this week you go with your friends to wherever you go to have fun? Of course take Izumi with you. You can stay at your friend Takuya's house, or your brother's place..."

Kouji wasn't sure how to reply to his grandfather with Izumi looking at him. Then he spoke, "Yes Sensei."

"It wasn't a command Kouji, it was a request though I do suggest strongly for you to do it. Maybe you can even go to the library that day. Oh, and speaking of plans, maybe you can take Izumi to kendo practice!" Kouji's grandfather continued talking more to himself, creating newer plans when the first ones he suggested weren't even decided upon yet. Kouji rolled his eyes and continued eating his meal while Izumi listened intently.

_He reminds me of Kouichi. Or maybe it's the other way around..?_ Izumi thought to herself.

_Then who is Lonewolf like? He doesn't like this guy or either of his parents._ The only-too-familiar voice in Izumi's head spoke.

_Well...not being nosy but Sensei mentioned Kouichi's place. That could mean that..._

_Divorced parents? Separate family?_ Izumi's spontaneous side didn't know the definition of nosy on the other hand.

_Yeah, probably._

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

While the main plot of the story was slowly taking its path, one of the many subplots that were coming was unfolding. Many miles away from the home of Hiroshi Minamoto in a half-Japanese teenager girl's home...

"Wonderful." the teenage girl gritted her teeth as she worked on one of her many long assignments for school. Even the evil force of Fujita Hanachi could not escape from the dark wrath of education.

"I bet _Izumi_ is getting help on all of this from Kouji-kun and his friends." Hanachi grumbled, annoyed.

Finally, after several hours of writing Hanachi slapped her pencil on her desk and jumped onto her bed. She stared at the ceiling of her room leaving her wicked mind to wander. Her main thought of course was of Kouji. She wondered like she did every single minute of her life what _her_ prince was doing. Yes, and only her's. She admitted honestly to herself that she never imagined forming the infamous club and running it.

At first it had seemed like a silly thought to her and she almost banished it when her longtime friend Mei bugged her to do it. Like Hanachi and practically every girl in the school, Mei had developed a huge crush on the Lonewolf. It was in a smart, nerdy kind of way however as Hanachi saw it. Hanachi remembered that during their first year of high school Mei was in his homeroom class and had plenty of chances to be his partner. Although as perfect their prince might have seemed on the outside, even The Kouji Minamoto struggled in various subjects of school. Luckily for him (as Mei saw it) and especially for Mei, she was there to help him. Usually Mei was able to handle her feelings for boys in a sophisticated manner but for some reason when she was even in the same room as Kouji she broke down.

Hanachi smiled coldly to herself as she remembered Mei telling her how stupid she had acted in front of Kouji. She pleaded for her friend's help and Hanachi gladly helped. Mostly out of boredom. However she soon realized that Mei and her weren't the only ones who had fallen for the Lonewolf. At the sign of a challenge and her friend's urging, Hanachi finally founded the Kouji Minamoto club and became its President. She hadn't expected many people to join the silly club but was surprised by the results. Soon Hanachi was known to all of the student body, especially to Kouji.

"Kouji-kun..." Hanachi stared dreamily at the ceiling as the memory of their first encounter came into her mind.

--

**3 years earlier**

Fujita Hanachi and Haruki Mei waited outside the junior high school like many other students for their ride to Hanachi's home. Mei seemed to be lost in her own thoughts while Hanachi was becoming impatient. Usually her mother was very punctual at picking her up but today she was fifteen minutes late!

"Where are you mother?" Hanachi said to herself. Then realization dawned on her and she interrupted Mei's daydreaming.

"Hey, I forgot my textbook in the classroom. I'll be right back, okay?"

Mei nodded and then continued with her daydreaming. Hanachi shook her head at the sight of her friend and left her. She quickly rushed to the classroom and was satisfied that it was still unlocked. Hanachi quickly grabbed her textbook and shoved it into her bag. She closed the door behind her and ran again through the hallways.

She wasn't quick enough to stop completely when she crashed into someone walking from another hallway that branched off. The two people smacked but Hanachi was the one that fell and dropped her bag.

Hanachi began,"Hey! Watch-"

She looked up.

"It."

The first thing she saw was a pair of dark blue fathomless eyes that stared into hers. Then below was a perfectly shaped nose and lips. The face was hidden behind an invisible mask. The boy's long dark hair was held back in a ponytail and he wore a bandana around his head. He didn't speak as he picked up Hanachi's belongings and handed them to her once she stood up.

"Thank you." she stammered hoping he hadn't noticed.

"Sure." was the only word he spoke. Without another word he walked away leaving Hanachi dazed. A very faint blush spread across her face and it became visible once the raven-haired boy was gone.

--

"My prince..._my_ prince." Fujita Hanachi mumbled to herself as the memory faded.

She put the main thought aside for just a few moments as she focused on her new thought or rather, problem. Izumi Orimoto. Orimoto Izumi. It didn't matter which way you said it, she was still the same person.

"Of course you won't want to join but thankfully I always have a plan B now after the first incident." Hanachi said aloud to herself.

"Ah, its too bad you started off on the wrong side. I'm sure if things had worked out differently we could have maybe even become close friends."

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

**[Edit-Friday, November 28, 2008. Just to clear up some confusion**: The characters are speaking in Japanese unless I indicate they are not (like in this chapter) Occasionally the words are written in romaji for emphasis or something like that. **]**

_Ahem_. Well obviously my karate class is now over. I had no idea what to do during sparring time. I was too busy watching my opponents' legs for their kicks and trying to kick on my own that I went through a little damage. My leg doesn't hurt as much though but I will definitely feel sore in the morning. D: Anyways I must prepare for karate tournament! Practice, practice practice! And more confidence when I spar! I haven't yet practiced so maybe I should. ;D

I hope you all have enjoyed the story so far. And now for many thinking questions: Will Izumi join the Kouji Minamoto club? How will Kouji and the others react to this? And if she doesn't join what will Hanachi's plan B contain? Will Junpei and Tomoki be caught for whatever they're doing? Will Takuya do the work for his project and actually pass this time? And finally...what is the true nature and being that hides behind Kouichi's façade?

-_cue dramatic music_-

Tune in for the next epi- I mean chapter of Kaze Ni Hikari, roughly translated as: Wind Into Light. I'm off to bed so that's all folks!


	12. Night One: Hidden Secrets

Dun dun dun...I have returned!

School. Everything I do right now revolves around that subject. I have too much work to get on my computer and relax to write fanfics or other things. Luckily I have Thanksgiving Break right now so I can work on this fanfic a bit.

I re-edited the other chapters, adding a word or two here and there or fixing grammatical errors. Nothing major.

And now I present to you Chapter 12. ;D

_okaasan_-mother

**Chapter 12: Night One: Hidden Secrets**

It was another usual day for American foreign exchange student Izumi Orimoto. One minute she was getting ready to go to school, the next the last bell rang ending the institution's teaching and perhaps torment. Izumi found herself at the main gates of Yamaguchi High, occasionally glancing to her left at her silent companion, if she could call him that.

Kouji Minamoto didn't make any movements as he stared out into the distance in front of him. To anyone who didn't know him well would have thought he was very focused on the vehicles that stopped in front of the school and picked up the teenagers that waited for their ride. However, if Takuya or Kouichi saw him they would have made some expression of laughter at seeing Kouji doze off into his own incomprehensible world.

In Izumi's case, she leaned more towards the lost-in-my-own-thoughts idea. Knowing it would bother him if she butted in without permission, Izumi didn't say a word and simply waited for Kouji to come back to Earth. Instead, Izumi took a life's moment of pause and allowed the foreign land with its culture to envelop her freely. She closed her eyes and sighed as she breathed the air around her and began humming.

Her humming had no particular tune but acted as a medium, conveying her feelings to the outside world. It carried a bit of the lively spirit that dwelled inside her and the rhythm indicated her organized manner. As Izumi hummed, a visual representation of her thoughts appeared before her eyes. It was none other than the peaceful setting of Sensei's home.

She could feel the gentle wind that caressed her like a mother and see the field of flowers that swayed at her as if she was their mother. The small pond seemed to wink as the sun's rays bounced off its clear blue water. Even the trees that seemed tall and looming over the house appeared to bow before her presence as if they were welcoming her. It was if she had always lived there and was being welcomed upon her return.

Although Izumi felt giddy at the thought she noticed something was missing. After the trees she spotted Sensei waving at her from one of the rooms that had its window opened and was almost knocked over as Yuki jumped towards her in pure happiness. However, one more person was missing. In her visual representation Izumi turned and turned looking for him but he wasn't there. As she ran through the field heading towards the house, Izumi met the unfortunate experience of tripping and found herself within a few seconds on the grass, face foward.

Groaning slightly, Izumi rolled over to face the clear sky. Her vision was blurry for a few moments but then it returned to normal within no time. To her surprise a face stared back at her. Fathomless blue eyes seemed to penetrate her defenses without even trying. Furrowed eyebrows above them confused her to no end as they shifted to face each other in a slanted position.

Izumi's own green eyes scanned down until they noticed a pair of lips pressed together to form a thin line. She found herself frowning by the second as the peaceful setting around her vanished leaving only one thing, or rather, person behind.

_"Why do you scowl at me like that?"_ she wanted to say but found herself unable to do so.

Meanwhile, the scowl on the face deepened until an expression of anger and then fury replaced the frustration. Izumi found herself frowning even more and more against it. It was like an epic battle going through its various stages and it was one she would not lose, no matter what.

_Izumi number one, wake up! _A condescending voice aroused her from her strange daydream.

Her eyes opened and the first thing she felt was her fingers pressing into the palm of her hand, two strong fists forming. She immediately relaxed her hands and shook them to clear the bad vibes. Then she took a short breath and looked to her left.

He was, of course, undoubtedly staring at her with a blended expression of amazement and confusion. She noticed his eyes weren't as fathomless as they usually were and even reflected a bit of light. Just a little bit. There was even less of a thin line; the mouth actually showed and in a loose oval shape. There was no slanting in his eyebrows whatsoever, but one of them was raised higher than the other.

Izumi took a longer breath and let it out. She gathered the courage she needed and lowered her eyes until they were on the same level as his. There was no hint of malice, just plain and pure open mindness.

Neither one of them knew how long they stayed like that or why they did. Luckily for both of them before any of that expected akwardness came, Kouichi beat it first.

"There you are Kouji, Izumi-chan." Apparently this was expected of him to say even though it was obviously known they would be at the front of the high school and he was the only one right off the bat who was able to say Izumi's first name with the cute suffix at the end without being chasticed. (Well there was Takuya, but he doesn't really count on the fact that she ignores him most of the time. Well there's Junpei too but he's hardly around. You all know why...)

"Hello Kouichi-kun." (Kouichi had no problem against that and with his heartwarming personality Izumi couldn't help but say it the minute they met.)

"I hope you don't mind since Kouji didn't bother telling you but all of us are going to my place right now." he said.

As Kouichi expected, Izumi appeared startled and a bit annoyed at the news. Her annoyance was of course aimed at the Lonewolf.

"Oh." Her lips formed the shape of that vowel. She then added, "Are we... are we staying there? For the night I mean."

The older twin nodded. "Don't worry, everything's prepared, including clothing for your stay."

The way he spoke so properly compared to his younger brother's brief words mader her curious.

"Okay." There wasn't much else she could say.

The minutes that would usually be spent in silence between Izumi and Kouji were filled up by Kouichi's questions and her replies. She found it very easy to talk to him and carefree as they chattered. Yet Izumi couldn't help but feel disappointed that Kouji said nothing as they walked to Kouichi's dwelling. He showed an expression of indifference as they traveled and talked on.

"Here we are." Kouichi said cheerfully as always.

Izumi looked at the small, modern Japanese home with an attentive gaze. As they passed the brick wall that surrounded the house, she glanced quickly at the two names engraved on a shiny silver-colored nameplate attached to the wall. The household family name was displayed first in kanji. _Kimura_. Two first names, _Tomoko _and _Kouichi _were shown below.

_Then Tomoko must be... _Izumi's thought was interrupted by Kouichi opening the door and entering the house. She trailed behind Kouji who followed his brother inside.

Although she would have liked to take several minutes to look at the adornments in the house, Izumi knew she would appear rude to the two boys and the other person that lived here. Instead, she remained silent as Kouichi led Kouji and her to what turned out to be the kitchen.

She knew it was the kitchen when several odors appealed to her sense of smell. The noises being made were those of someone cooking. When they were within reach of the kitchen however, Kouichi stopped Izumi and a puzzled Kouji. Then he walked into the area of several delicious smells and various noises. Izumi heard Kouichi speak to the person in the kitchen but couldn't make out what he said. The exchange of words was so brief however, that she didn't have time to.

Within a few seconds Kouichi reappeared and to their surprise, he steered them away from the kitchen and towards the living room. He told Izumi to make herself at home and again disappeared into the kitchen, leaving her with the silent Lonewolf.

He immediately took a seat on the only sofa that was there and after a few seconds of hesitation, so did she. Once again neither one spoke to the other, looking in a different direction. Izumi's head buzzed with endless questions as she used that time of waiting to glance around her. (She was careful not to glance to her right.) There was not a lot of adornment to look at, which suited her fine, but it gave off the comfortable feeling of being at home.

As she was looking at a colorful painting that caught her eye, Izumi heard the sound of footsteps approach the room. She noticed Kouji perk up from his still, statue-like position and glance at the hallway to his right. Kouichi appeared first and was looking behind him as he came into the living room.

Izumi gasped as a middle-aged woman entered the room.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

She wasn't sure why she gasped when the woman appeared behind Kouichi. Perhaps it was the fact that she looked eerily similar to the two twins that were in the same room. Her long, straight hair was currently tied in a loose ponytail, the same as Kouji.

As Izumi looked at her face, she noticed her eyes were a dark blue color like the two boys and carried a similar kindness like Kouichi but an opaque veil would occasionally swing in front, hiding whatever secrets they contained, but also alluring the onlooker into their illusionary depths. The thoughts that the person sitting next to her also carried the veil, except more often, made her shiver inwardly.

However, even though she noticed the similar features between mother and sons, Izumi saw something that only came with the passing of years and being a solitary parent. The obvious weariness and haggardness that Tomoko Kimura showed caused Izumi to pity her. A few strands of premature gray hair came loose from the tied hair and appeared frizzy. Her eyes although kind and occasionally fathomless, carried a great burden that Izumi wanted to lift off. Her figure was thin but not in a healthy type of way. But, when Ms. Kimura spoke, her tone contrasted with her tired appearance.

"You must be Izumi." The strong resolute voice that spoke almost knocked her off her seat. There was a hint of the motherly kindness but it rested in the center of the molded strength and firmness.

Izumi nodded in silent awe of the mother standing before her. "Orimoto Izumi. Pleased to meet you, Kimura-san."

Ms. Kimura smiled, a simple cheeriness sparkling in her eyes. "Call me Tomoko."

"Oh, I couldn't." Izumi shook her head politely. The idea of calling a mother, much less the mother of two people she was getting to know, was not acceptable.

"Yes you could and can. Everyone does, including their friends." Ms. Kimura indicated to Kouichi and Kouji.

"Really, it's fine Izumi-chan." Kouichi reassured her.

"Well if you're okay with that." Izumi finally agreed.

"Then it's settled." Tomoko grinned and then turned to face her second son. "Well I'm relieved you have good taste. You were starting to worry me."

Izumi quickly realized she was talking to Kouji about _her. _She wasn't able to stop the pink blush that quickly spread across her face. Apparently, Kouji was startled too at the remark, since he stuttered at the first sound when he tried to speak.

"I- It's not like that." he mumbled.

"Oh, I know. Kouichi had already told me that Izumi is the one you're sponsoring. I just wanted to see the expression on your face!" Tomoko chortled.

Kouichi chasticed her but couldn't help but release a chuckle as he said, "Don't embarass Kouji-kun and Izumi-chan like that, _okaasan_."

"I'm sorry but you would have done the same." Tomoko said before putting on her 'mom hat' back on.

"I'm preparing dinner, which you probably know by now. Kouichi, show Izumi her room and Kouji..." The Lonewolf looked up as she spoke his name.

"Can you help me chop the vegetables?"

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

When Izumi and Kouichi were in the guest room, Izumi gathered the courage to ask, "She's Kouji's biological mother as well, isn't she?"

"Yes, she's our birth mother." Kouichi replied as he showed her where she could put her school belongings.

"Our parents divorced when we were born sixteen years ago and mom took care of me while Mr. Minamoto took care of Kouji." Izumi caught the slight stiff tone Kouichi used when he said the father's name.

He continued, "By fate, I suppose, we found each other and Kouji met the mother he thought was deceased after so many years."

"Kouji must have been very happy when he met his mother." Izumi said softly.

"Yes. It was the second time he smiled in sixteen years. The first was when he met me." Kouichi noticed her surprised expression. "Hard to believe, I know, but he smiled. Of course don't let him know I told you that."

Izumi made the motion of zipping her mouth shut and throwing away the key. "Of course."

"Well you're probably hungry by now. Why don't we go join my brother and mother in the kitchen?"

The blonde foreigner nodded. "Allright."

In the years to come, that evening spent with the Kimuras and Kouji would be one of the most memorable times Izumi would recall.

She had never seen Kouji so animated before in talking and took several notes in her mind for later use. Ms. Kimura would start off with some simple questions like, 'How's school' or 'How was your day' and then moved on to questions that required Kouji to answer with longer replies which probably irritated him.

Izumi knew that Kouji knew she was watching him and was pleased that he could do nothing about it. At least not in front of his mom.

_If this is the only way I can learn more about him, then fine._ Izumi thought to herself.

_Eventually you'll have to learn about him yourself. _The voice inside her head reminded her.

_True, but for now..._ Izumi left her other self alone and listened to the rest of the family discussion as she ate her dinner.

The minutes passed by and Izumi grew to admire Tomoko Kimura. She loved the motherly qualities she had and the strength she carried even though she appeared strained to the maximum. She was undoubtedly a mother who would take time when needed to talk to her sons about anything: school, outside school activities, etc. That and she listened patiently as her sons talked to her.

_She's amazing. I'm pretty jealous of Kouichi and Kouji. It makes me wish- _Izumi's thought stopped as a pang shot through her mind.

_No need to bring past memories into this. _The other Izumi's voice echoed in their mind through the rest of dinner time.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Good night, Izumi-chan." Kouichi said as he headed to bed.

"Good night, Kouichi-kun." Izumi replied and was about to say the same to Kouji but he was already inside Kouichi's room before she could say anything.

Izumi closed the door behind her and took out a pair of pajamas Tomoko had lent her for bed. The decorations were pink roses and lilies, two of her favorite flowers.

"That was nice of her." She said to herself as she rested in bed.

For what seemed hours, Izumi stared at the ceiling, unable to sleep. She had too much on her mind to close her eyes and drift off into the land of dreams. Frustrated, she decided to go to the restroom, the only other place she could think of to clear her thoughts.

She was surprised to find the light on in the kitchen, trying to remember if it had been turned off once dinner was over. Izumi shrugged and decided to do Tomoko a favor by turning it off. When she went to the kitchen however, she was more surprised to see none other but Kouji sitting down and staring off into space.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" Izumi said lightly as she sat down in front of him.

Kouji remained silent as usual and looked down at the table. Izumi decided that only patience might get her anywhere. She started the conversation and hoped Kouji would eventually join.

"Well, this has been nice, meeting Tomoko and all. Her cooking is amazing. Of course you probably know that by now. Her personality is interesting and-"

"Is there something you want?" Kouji interrupted coldly, still looking down at the table.

"What do you mean?" Izumi asked innocently.

"Or are you just trying to get me to join in your mindless chatter?" Kouji went on as if he hadn't hear her.

_Luckily_ for Izumi he happened to look up when she blushed at his second rhetorical question.

She recovered quickly and snapped in reply, "Well unlike some of us I'm trying to be friendly." Izumi stood up in irritation and was about to leave when Kouji spoke.

"Wait." he said calmly.

Izumi turned around and sighed. So much for patience. "What?"

Kouji pointed at the empty chair in front of him and waited. Puzzled, Izumi walked back and sat down. The Lonewolf placed his hands on the table and met Izumi's eyes with his own. Her heart seemed to skip a beat as she looked into them.

"Kouichi planned all of this but what his intentions were I don't know." Kouji began.

"I'm sure they were good." Izumi commented and thought she could detect a nod from him.

"He's a lot like her, our mom. Hardworking, reliable, a good cook, etc."

"I bet so." Izumi said and her eyes softened.

Kouji had looked away from her but not to be rude. The fathomless expression was there but it was different. It seemed to Izumi that he was recalling the other times he had spent with his mother. The look he carried was hard to decode but maybe it was a bit peaceful?

"Well," Izumi began, "you're like your mom too. You don't like to show that you're weak or any other secrets for that matter."

Her words broke his trance and he looked back into her eyes. Her heart skipped another beat.

"What about you? Are you the same as your mother?" he whispered.

Izumi stood up quickly. "That's none of your business." She left without another word, heading back to the bedroom.

The Lonewolf watched as she left and then looked back out into space.

"And I thought I was secretive." he whispered to himself.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_


	13. Inner Thoughts: The L Scandal Continues

Christmas Break! yayness.

-_**ding dong**_- As the Ghost of Christmas Past (in this case) I state again as I have said before that I have never owned Digimon Frontier nor its characters. As the Ghost of Christmas Present I am telling you now that I do not own this series. Finally, as the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come I am warning you that in the future I will repeat once more that I will never own Digimon Frontier or the characters associated with it... -_**ding dong end**_-

Okay, enough with that. Here's chapter thirteen.

**Chapter 13: Inner Thoughts: The L Scandal Continues**

Morning arrived quickly to Izumi's relief. After her akward conversation with the Lonewolf, a chain of nightmares reached her in her sleep. For the fifth time Izumi awoke to find herself gasping and sweat dripping down her face.

_Just a dream this time._ She thought to herself.

_Don't you think it's odd that you've had it five times in one night?_ Izumi number two spoke up unexpectedly, _And they surprised you everytime._

_Well yes... I wonder if they're a sign. _Izumi number one pondered over the thought as she got dressed for school. She tried not to think of how the Kimura family managed to get her a clean school uniform for the next day since she only confused herself at the idea.

_It was nice of them nonetheless._

Before Izumi knew it she was eating breakfast with Kouichi, Kouji, their mother, and then they were being taken to school. Izumi felt a feeling of uneasiness form inside of her and tried not to show it to the two guys.

Today was the day. She knew that after the normal course of school took place she would have to face the dangers of the Kouji Minamoto Fanclub herself. Izumi cast a quick sideglance at Kouji as the two of them and Kouichi entered the school. He met her eyes for a brief moment before looking in front of him once more. All Izumi could decode from his expression was that he knew what she was going to face in the afternoon.

_He hasn't mentioned anything about it to me. Does he want me to go and see the result of it? _Izumi questioned herself until the trio arrived at their class just a few minutes before the bell rang.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Hey Kouji, are you allright?" Takuya interrupted whatever thoughts the Lonewolf had been processing.

"Huh? Uh, yeah." For once the brunette had startled him.

A puzzled expression formed on Takuya's face. He said, "Wow, something must be really on your mind if you answered like that. What's up?"

"Nothing." Kouji replied quickly as he noticed his brother arrive at the table with Izumi.

Luckily for him Takuya didn't persist at the reply as he began chatting amiably with Izumi. If it had been his twin on the other hand, his thoughts would have been revealed in no time. Before he tuned out completely, Kouji, much to his annoyance, listened to what the others were talking about at their group table.

"Wha-t?" Why didn't you invite me?" Kouji of course had expected Takuya to be upset when he was told that Izumi stayed over at Kouichi's house with the two twins. It was just another revealing point that he liked Izumi. Kouji was sure that even she knew it herself.

_Idiot._ He thought to himself. _He might as well shout it to the entire world._

Kouji glanced at Izumi for the second time to check on how she was handling her predicament that would soon arrive. He noticed that she was trying to not appear nervous but couldn't manage the façade.

_Most girls would be eager for their first meeting but she's the complete opposite. Then again Takuya did a good job at freaking her out at how the members act._

"After school." He replied normally at the question he had been asked.

"Ugh. I'm going to get creamed and just because I'm new along with the freshmen." Takuya groaned at the new topic that had emerged. Izumi wasn't the only one who was nervous at what would happen that afternoon.

"You should have tried out last year." Kouichi said to Takuya and then looked at Kouji, "And you should have never quit."

"Hey, I'm fine with Kouji quitting soccer. He had kendo too you know? Along with all this work we have for school he would only be able to manage one sport."

"You're just saying that because soccer's your sport and you know I'm better at it even if I don't try. Of course I did quit to give you some chance in it." Kouji smirked.

"Don't taunt him _otooto_." Kouichi spoke and ended the conflict quickly before it became worse.

He then looked at Izumi, startling her from her daydreaming, and asked her if she was interested in any club or organization.

"Um, yes." She replied and was soon talking without any kind of nerve.

_How does he do that?_ Kouji wondered at his brother's natural ability to make people comfortable just by being himself.

It was a gift that unfortunately was never passed down to him.

Since he knew that the only way to learn more about Izumi (besides talking to her himself) was through Kouichi, Kouji listened to their conversationuntil the end of lunch. He absorbed her replies like a large sponge, wondering when they would come in handy.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"Well, here I go." Izumi said softly as she began walking down the hallway in which the classroom she was looking for was in.

The day had been a blur for Izumi as she now tried to recall it. Throughout it the thought of what was to happen at the meeting kept appearing in her mind, bugging her to no end.

_It's going to be okay. _Izumi had constantly reminded herself as each of her classes passed by. Now, as she came nearer and nearer to the door she feared approaching, Izumi tried thinking of something to distract her.

The image that appeared was of Kouji glancing at her just before he left in Sensei's car. It was the same blank glance he had gave her before, yet for some reason Izumi felt relieved.

_I can do this so there's nothing for me to be worried about._ She said strongly in her head.

_You're not doing this alone either. _A second voice added.

_So you're actually going to watch my back? _Izumi asked her other self.

_Well seeing that I share the same body, if you get hurt physically then so do I._

_Of course you would say that._

_Of course._

Izumi reached for the doorknowand slowly turned it, pushing the door slightly inwards. She paused for a few seconds and then pushed the door all the way back, entering the room.

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

"No way. Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?" Sixteen-year-old Takuya Kanbara had found paradise.

"Sorry about that but certain procedures had to be followed, you know?" Junpei Shibayama grinned.

"Yeah I know!" Takuya grinned back and rushed to the mini-arcade where Tomoki was already playing.

He added, "Good thing I didn't eat anything for lunch today."

"Lunch? That wasn't lunch. This is a real lunch." Junpei pointed to the food buffet he was enjoying.

"Yeah!" Tomoki agreed.

"So why didn't you bring Izumi and the others? They should enjoy all of this." Takuya said.

Junpei looked back at him and sighed. "That would only ruin our fun."

"Huh, how?"

"Well, let's see. First of all, Kouichi would no doubt tell one of the teachers about us coming here and we would end up in detention. Second, Kouji enjoying something is like you caring about your grades. He's a complete killjoy." Junpei explained.

"Well what about Izumi.?"

"Izumi? Uh well... she would probably be on Kouichi's side against all of this."

"Oh, right." Takuya looked down dejectedly.

Junpei walked to his side and pattted him on the shoulder. "Don't let that bring you down. Be glad that you're in here in the first place."

Takuya sighed but then replied, "Allright."

_KoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmIkOuZuMiKoUzUmI_

For those of you that have been waiting for something interesting to happen in this chapter, I am sorry if you are disappointed. I like surprises (the good kind) and this is one of them so you'll have to wait for the next chapter for something good to happen. I had a brain fart so that's why this chapter turned out like this. That and- well, you'll see next chapter.

3 MORE DAYS UNTIL CHRISTMAS! For those who care. :P


	14. Kettei

_And my New Year's resolution is..._

Well besides doing better in school I hope to get farther in this fanfic and get to the really interesting stuff.

Hmm this saying doesn't ever seem to change even with the years coming and going: I do **not** own Digimon Frontier or its characters.

Yes, this chapter is thirteen and a half. I meant to upload this on Christmas Day but it didn't work out. I also meant to upload this just before midnight but apparently fate had me doing other things. (It's almost 2 AM as I type this)

I hope everyone has an awsome year of two double o nine. _2009_

Happy New Year's minna-san! ;D

_kettei-decision_

**Chapter 14: Kettei**

"Welcome Izumi-chan." A chorus of voices welcomed her.

The members of the Kouji Minamoto club stepped aside to form a path in the classroom for Izumi to walk on. To Izumi, it appeared as if the girls were greeting her like a princess or someone of nobility. Whatever it was that Izumi expected from the fanclub it was definitely not this. She tried not to reveal her thoughts as she continued walking towards the front of the classroom.

Once Izumi was at the front, one by one the club members began taking a seat. Then Izumi was greeted warmly by the vice-president of the club, AKA Haruki Mei. Mei pointed to a seat that was against the chalkboard and facing all of the girls. Hesitantly, Izumi sat down in what she guessed was a very honored seat and waited.

"Everyone rise for your president!" Mei interrupted the chatter of voices that had started after Izumi was greeted.

Izumi noticed how immediately everyone became silent and they all turned to face the door that Izumi had walked through. The door was opened swiftly and a figure walking in.

The president of the Kouji Minamoto club gave a dazzling smile at the girls who stood up to greet. Not wanting to be rude, Izumi stood up as well. She couldn't help but notice how regally Fujita Hanachi walked as she headed towards her seat, which happened to be next to Izumi's.

_Hmph, show off. _Izumi's other half cut through Izumi's thoughts. _She acts way too pompously from what I can tell already._

_Yeah, you're right. _Izumi replied.

"Thank you everyone. I'm glad all of you could make it to this _special_ meeting." Izumi didn't miss the emphasis Hanachi placed on the word special.

Hanachi paused at the cheers that had erupted from the members and then continued, "And now I shall introduce our Guest of Honor for this afternoon. This is Orimoto Izumi and she is a foreign exchange student from America."

All of the members clapped and once again became silent when Hanachi raised a hand. She took her seat to Izumi's right and turned to face her. Izumi suddenly began feeling nervous and hoped she could survive through the rest of the meeting.

"Are you enjoying so far your stay in Japan?" Hanachi asked with an innocent voice.

Izumi smiled timidly and nodded. "Yes, it has been amazing so far."

_So far._ Another voice reminded her.

"That's good to hear. Well...I supoose you want to know what we do in this club and why." Hanachi stated.

Izumi nodded again, indicating for the president to continue.

_Not really but we don't have much of a choice, right? _A second voice that Hanachi couldn't hear answered with a sardonic edge.

The club president took a deep breath and let it out. Then she began:

"The Kouji Minamoto club was founded last year by none other than myself. Although it's also a club where high school girls get to hang out with their friends after school, it is mainly a club where we discuss about none other than Kouji Minamoto-san. He is the main focus of the club. Now, the reason why we have this in the first place is simple."

Hanachi paused and nodded to the other members. She raised three fingers on her right hand and counted down. When her index finger was lowered, everyone part of the club spoke aloud in unison. The words Izumi heard were this:

"We love Kouji Minamoto."

_Wow. They. Are. Insane! _Izumi number two exclaimed.

Before Izumi could reply however, Hanachi continued speaking.

In a cheerful voice she said, "Yes, we are all deeply in love with our prince Kouji Minamoto. He is a symbol of the ideal man a girl would want and thus we worship him as an idol. Oh, if only other men, or boys I should say, would follow his example then maybe they would receive fans as devoted as us. Well, never mind that. I now ask you a very important question Izumi-chan. Will you join the Kouji Minamoto club?"

Yet again everyone became silent and waited for Izumi's reply. Izumi knew that she had to answer. Her reply would decide the fate that was in store for her. She took a deep breath and let it out.

"I'm sorry but no." Izumi said simply.

The silence that followed afterwards would haunt Izumi in her dreams that night. All of the girls stared at Izumi with a blank gaze. This unnerved Izumi and she wondered what all of them were thinking. She wanted to speak again but found herself unable to.

Finally, the president of the club cleared her throat and spoke.

"I see." Those were the only words she said to Izumi.

Then, Fujita Hanachi turned around and walked to where the vice-president was. She whispered something into Haruki Mei's ear and walked towards the door of the classroom.

"Dismissed." Hanachi said aloud without facing the members and exited the classroom in a flash.

"Come with me Izumi-chan." Mei said in a semi-timid voice as she carried her belongings to the door.

Izumi followed quietly as they now left the empty classroom. Once they were outside, she couldn't help but notice that Mei appeared calm and collected. When she noticed Izumi looking at her Mei looked back with a bright smile before turning her head to face forwards.

Then, "Is Fujita-san mad at me?" Izumi asked shyly.

Mei looked at her and shrugged. "She was probably disappointed that you didn't want to join."

"It seems like an interesting club," Izumi chose her words carefully, "but not for me."

Mei nodded and said, "It's okay Izumi-chan. Oh, there's my mother."

Sure enough a silver car came into view and stopped in front of the two girls. Izumi opened one of the rear doors in a polite manner and sat in the back while Mei sat next to her mother. Then the car left the school, heading to the Haruki household.

As soon as the car was out of view a figure stepped out of its hiding place. The figure stared out at where the car had traveled and wondered what to make out of the situation.

Kanbara Takuya, finished and exhausted from soccer practice, couldn't believe what he had just seen. Well, he could, but he wished he _hadn't_ seen it. He was the type of person who did not react calmly in any way whatsoever to these kinds of situations.

Takuya spent the first few minutes trying to get himself together. Once he was done with that he attempted to think of what to do.

_Not Izumi-chan. They got her too. _He thought at first.

_I have to save her before it's too late. Should I tell the others? No. They would think I can't handle something like this and try to stop me. Especially him. This is something I have to do on my own. _Takuya reached the decision as soon as his mother arrived.

"So how was soccer practice sweetie?" Mrs. Kanbara asked in a motherly tone.

"Mom!" Takuya groaned at the last word she used.

"Ha ha!" His younger brother Shinya chortled.

Takuya glared at his younger brother but did nothing more. Shinya immediately stopped laughing to stare at him in surprise. Something usually happened after the glare which resulted in their mother scolding them and Takuya getting in trouble.

"What?" Takuya asked at seeing his brother's stare.

"Nothing." Shinya replied and went back to playing his handheld video game.

Takuya shrugged and turned to stare out the window. His mind began forming several plans for the situation. He knew he would do whatever it took to save Izumi from the Kouji Minamoto club's wrath.

_Hah! I can't wait to see the expression on Kouji's face when he finds out that I saved Izumi. He'll wish he'd saved her._ Takuya grinned to himself at the thought.

* * *

I wish it could have been longer but I've had some writer's block during Christmas so I didn't feel very inspired to write anything good. Now that I wrote one of the turning points of the story the plot should get a lot better from now on! (hopefully :P)

Please review and of course no flaming, even in the new year.


	15. Night Two: Opinions To Share

Spring Break! ;D It's gone by quickly however. I don't want to go back to school just yet. :(

BTW: Thank you everyone for the reviews! Reading them makes me feel really happy. Seriously. No, I haven't been ignoring because I'm just as eager to find out what happens next, and I'm the writer! I hope that my updates continue to keep everyone interested and eager to read more. :)

This chapter here is just a mini, sidestory of one of the characters I invented for this fanfic. I wouldn't have wrote this if there wasn't a reason. Haruki Mei is actually going to be a pretty important minor character later on...

For now, here's some insight into a bit of her past and the Lonewolf's as well!

**Mistah Disclaimer**: Whitewolfgirl does not own Digimon Frontier nor any of its copyrighted characters. She only owns the characters she made up. This fanfic was written for pure pleasure and entertainment. Any names, people, places, etc are coincidental and etc...blah.

**Chapter 15: Night Two: Opinions To Share**

"Wow, this is a nice room." Izumi commented as she followed Mei into her bedroom.

The walls were painted lavender, radiating a calm feeling upon those who entered. Instead of modernizing like most Japanese teenagers, Mei's bed was a _futon_, instead of a Western-styled bed. She did however have a medium-sized desk in the corner of her room alongside a wide bookshelf that contained a variety of books and shojo manga.

_It's so neat...almost like my room was at St. Cecile's._ Izumi couldn't help but think to herself.

"Thank you Izumi-chan." Mei blushed slightly before going to place her school bag on her desk.

"Today's homework didn't see like too much. We can work on it later." Mei said.

Izumi frowned slightly but nodded. She had never broken her daily routine of homework first, fun later. It wasn't that she enjoyed doing homework, but she knew that if she procrastinated, she would regret it later when working on the assignment at the last minute.

_I guess I can let it slide, but just this once._ She made a mental note to herself, and couldn't help but hear a familiar chuckle in the back of her mind.

Mei hesitated for a few seconds but then gathered the courage to ask, "Izumi-chan, you're partners with Minamoto-san for our English project, correct?"

Izumi replied, "Yes, why do you ask?"

"Have you figured out how both of you can work on the project together? Minamoto-san, as you might have already guessed, is not very social. Before you came, he was always partners with his friend Takuya-kun on projects. Before Takuya became his partner in everything, hardly anyone was able to make him work on a project with themselves." Mei explained.

"Oh, um...I'll figure it out. I guess.'

"Okay..." The way the other girl's expression looked like made a gear in Izumi's mind turn.

"Mei...chan?"

"Yeah?"

Izumi asked directly, "Do you like Kouji?"

When Mei froze, Izumi knew her assumption was right.

Then, "Well, I won't deny it if it's obvious. Besides, you know I'm part of the club, so yeah.

When Izumi didn't reply to that, Mei asked timidly, "Do you want to know why?"

Izumi shrugged, "If you want to tell me. I won't tell anyone else though, if that's what you want."

For the first time, Izumi saw Haruki Mei's true smile.

"Thank you. Well..it started in English class during my first year of high school. Before, I had never had any classes with Minamoto-san. In fact, I didn't even know who he was until then...

As Mei began her anecdote, Izumi felt as if she was in her place, experiencing the event that happened...

**1 year earlier**

"Class, now that we have introduced ourselves, time for your first project of the year!" The teacher announced with a hint of amusement. Sure enough to her expectations, the majority of the class groaned in dismay. It wouldn't be their last groans of the year. After the teacher explained the details of the project, she picked up a clipboard from her desk and spoke.

"To save all of you the trouble, I already picked partners for the assignment. _No_, you may not switch partners. However, if you must, all complaints will be handed to me in private. I will make the final decision of whether you will receive a new partner or not. Starting off..." The teacher began reading the names off the list.

Amidst the class of thirty students, a dark-haired girl was finishing her notes from the previous class in her notebook. She kept her ears closed to the rest of the world until her name was called.

"Haruki Mei and Minamoto Kouji." Mei looked up to glance at her teacher. Several whispers rippled throughout the students but the teacher ignored them and continued to talk.

"That's everyone. Separate into your groups of two and start planning out your project. You will have the rest of the of the class to work on it but the rest of the time afterwards is your personal time." Without another word the instructor sat in her seat and began planning for the next class.

Mei remained in her seat until she figured out who her partner was. Even though she memorized most of her classmates' faces, the name Minamoto didn't pair up with any of the faces. Finally, once everyone was relocated to other parts of the classroom, Mei saw one person still sitting in his desk.

He was writing in his notebook and didn't look up until Mei had approached his desk and cleared her throat. At the same time a pair of blue eyes met her own, Mei felt a tingly feeling vibrate in herself. However, she ignored it and spoke to her partner.

"So...where do you want to start on the project?" Mei asked with a casual tone.

Kouji looked back down at his notebook and didn't reply. He scribbled some characters on the paper and pushed the notebook until it faced Mei. She glanced at it and read his words.

_Do what you want. I don't care._

"Oh." Mei muttered and sat down in the desk in front of Kouji's.

She placed her notebook on the desk and began writing. Mei didn't know why she listened to what Kouji said, but she ended up planning the entire project by the end of English class. When she was done, Mei turned and showed the plans to Kouji. Below the last page of the plans, she left a message.

It read, _Is this okay? :/_

Kouji nodded and looked back down at his notebook. Mei turned back around and glanced at her work. A single thought ran through her mind just before the bell rang for lunch. She continued thinking about it, even at home.

_Did he just smile?_

The next few days, Mei's English teacher continued reminding the class, "Don't forget when your projects are due!"

_Crap! I did my part of the project but did he..._ Mei looked at Kouji who was sitting several seats ahead of her in the row next to her's.

_I have to ask him, but not now._ Mei thought to herself and decided immediately after school would be the best time.

Thus, when the final bell rang, Mei followed Kouij until she ended up at his locker. She remained silent, not sure how to ask the question in mind. Luckily for her, Kouji seemed to have read her mind.

Without turning to look at her he said cooly, "I did the work. Is there somewhere and sometime you want to meet to put all of it together?"

"Um, yeah. The local library not too far from here. Is this Saturday fine?" Mei could hear her voice stumble as she spoke and wondered if Kouji noticed.

Kouji closed his locker and again Mei felt the pair of blue eyes meet hers. She felt the same feeling she felt before but stronger.

"Sounds good."

_What if he's not coming? I'll really look like an idiot then._

Saturday had finally arrived and Mei had realized several things. Whenever she was at school she would find herself staring at Kouji from behind and sometimes forget to take notes for her classes. At lunch she would look around the cafeteria until she spotted him. She was surprised to not find him sitting alone, but rather with four other guys. Whether he spoke to them, Mei couldn't tell, and his facial expressions never changed much when he sat with the other boys.

When Mei was at home, she would often doze off in the middle of working on her homework and _think_ about him. She would also glance at her clock as if her eyes could make time move faster until she was at school again, watching him from behind. Mei recalled all of these actions now as she took out her part of the project and looked over it.

_It's not as if I'm stalking him, but I shouldn't be thinking about him at all! What's wrong with me?_ Mei wondered.

The answer soon became clear.

Mei was working on some of her other schoolwork when Kouji arrived late, and in a hurry.

"Sorry I'm late." He said, slightly panting.

"It's fine. I was just working on some other stuff." Mei replied.

She placed her other work aside and moved the papers that were her part of the project to the middle of the table where they sat at.

"Um, here's the essay for our topic and here's the second poem in English. The citations are stapled behind the essay." Mei flipped through the pages lazily.

Kouji nodded and said, "Uh, this is what I drew for the scene from the book that goes with our topic. Here's the first poem in Japanese." He pulled out his work and showed it to Mei.

Mei's eyes widened. She, of course, looked at the drawing first. The scene Kouji depicted was frightening and cruel but the drawing itself was a masterpiece. Most of the drawing, or painting to be exact, consisted of red shades, fitting for the scene.

Mei couldn't help but say in a sarcastic tone, "I didn't know I had da Vinci for a partner."

"Speak for yourself, Shakespeare." Kouji replied to her surprise as he looked at the poem she had written.

"Yours is better." Mei retorted as she glanced at the poem he had written.

"Try seeing one of my essays in English. A ten year old could do better. Much better." As if to prove his point, Kouji pulled out a paper from a previous English assignment and showed it to Mei.

Mei read through it and found herself making faces.

"Well, it's not _that _bad. It's...um..." She said as she finished reading.

"It sucks, I know." Kouji said point blankly.

Mei burst out laughing and was immediately shushed by one of the librarians. She apologized and then faced Kouji.

"Well I guess that's it. The project isn't due for another week so we saved some time." Mei said.

"The first project for me that actually turned out good." Kouji told her.

"Really?" Mei asked him.

Kouji nodded, "Yeah. Thanks."

"For what?"

"For being a decent partner. Actually, you were better than decent." Mei saw for the second time Kouji Minamoto smile briefly.

Kouji glanced at his watch and said, "I have to go. Cram school."

Mei nodded and replied, "Ok."

"I'll bring the stuff when it's due."

However, Mei was too lost in her thoughts to hear the last thing Kouji said before he left. She mechanically put her work in her school bag and left the library a few minutes after Kouji. On her way home she replayed what Kouji had said about her in her mind.

Finally, she admitted the secret she kept insider her mind aloud, when she was a few steps away from her door.

"I love Kouji Minamoto. Now what?"

"Is that it?" Izumi asked when Mei stopped talking and looked at her.

"The beginning of it at least. Basically putting the story in a few sentences to show my point, I guess I fell in love with him because he was different from most guys." Mei explained.

"That's for sure," Izumi muttered.

Aloud she said, "He seems like the cool, mysterious kind of guy. I guess the nickname _Lonewolf _fits him well."

"Yeah." Mei averted Izumi's face.

"Mei-chan, now that I think about it and what you have told me along with what Fujita-san said, is there a reason why Fujita-san wanted me to join her club?" Izumi asked.

Mei shrugged, "You'll have to ask her that."

"Mei-chan..." Izumi said softly, looking at her.

Mei didn't reply at first, thinking about how she should answer.

_She's smarter than Hanachi-chan gives her credit for._

"Well, yes, but I don't know the entire reason." Mei finally admitted.

"What do you know?"

Sighing, Mei replied, "I guess in a way we're all enemies, the members of the club. We all have a goal in mind that we want to reach. However, we're also all allied for this goal because Hanachi-chan set it up that way. None of us really have a chance of getting Minamoto-san to like us, so at least we have another girl to talk to about him. Hanachi-chan wants everything to be fair for everyone so when she finds out someone who likes Minamoto-san but isn't in the club, she convinces that girl to join. Do you sort of understand what I'm getting at, Izumi-chan?"

Izumi nodded, "All is fair in love and war. So...Fujita-san sees me as a threat to the club members and herself if I get to be close with Kouji while she and they aren't?"

"I never said that, Izumi-chan."

"You didn't have to. I already guessed. Well, all of you don't have to worry about that. In no way at all do I like Kouji Minamoto. It's true that he's different from most guys but he has a side that you fangirls haven't seen and it's not that nice. I don't like Kouji and I definitely don't love him. He's just my host for my stay in Japan as an exchange student. That's all." Izumi explained.

"Are you sure about that?" Mei asked with a wary tone.

"Positive. Besides, Kouji hates me. As long as he hates me, I'l think about him with dislike." Izumi smiled as she replied.

"Oh, okay. I didn't know you thought about him that way."

"Well now you do."

Mei smiled back at Izumi and said, "That's good to hear."

* * *

Well, I had what I had to say at the beginning before the chapter started, so yeah. Once again, thanks to everyone to sent those awsome reviews. Keep 'em coming! ;D


	16. Viewpoint One Scene of the Crime

At this point I don't even know what to say. School is just a very difficult obstacle in the way for being able to update quickly. All I can really say is that updates in this story will depend on how much spare time I have to write, jumping over bumps for story ideas, and my motivation to continue this story. I hope whoever has been reading this story will start noticing some improvements in my writing as I get the chance to update. This year I'm taking a creative writing class, the only one offered in the state I live in, so I'm pretty lucky. So from here on I'll be looking over my work carefully, applying what I learned in the class to my writing to make it better. Just letting you guys know that I haven't forgotten about this story and I have been reading the reviews it has received. :)

**Chapter 16: Viewpoint One–Scene of the Crime**

"Kouji, are you ready?" Sensei's voice echoed from upstairs.

Minamoto Kouji was finishing placing school items in his school bag as he replied in the affirmative to his grandfather.

He shut the door behind him as he departed his bedroom and aimed downstairs. Yuki attempted to lick his face as he prepared to leave the house. She was calmed down by some simple commands he muttered and he was able to arrive at Sensei's car.

"I bet you missed Izumi while she was gone, right?" Sensei teased him like a playful child as he pulled the vehicle out of the driveway and onto the road.

Ignoring the query, Kouji focused outside the window. Clusters of clouds wandered in the cerulean sky, obtaining a bleak gray that forecasted a heavy deluge later in the day.

_So much for kendo practice. _The Lonewolf then directed his mind to a thought that ironically was related to his grandfather's question.

He hadn't missed Izumi while she spent the night at Haruki Mei's house, but he wondered what had occurred at the meeting she attended the previous day, and its results.

_Then again, why should I care if she joined or not? It's only one more unnecessary thing to think about._ Kouji resolved to forget about Izumi's interaction with his fan club and move on.

His grandfather stopped the car upon arriving at the high school and left quickly as always for work. Luckily for Kouji, he didn't encounter any of his fan club members as he entered the building and searched for his brother. However, as Kouji continued ambling through the familiar hallways, he discerned that _no one_ was around.

_Strange…_The observation stayed in his mind as he reached his locker.

After closing it, Kouji heard a well-known voice call out his name. He immediately turned to watch Kouichi sprinting towards him, a frantic expression on his face.

"Kouichi what's wr-"Kouji began to speak but his older sibling cut him off.

"Izumi." It took only that name to cloud Kouji's mind.

Kouichi continued, "I tried calling you on your phone but reached your voicemail. Izumi got into a fight with some yankii early in the morning that trespassed on the school's property when the staff wasn't around. It's-it's horrible! Mei found her lying in the grass, unconscious and bleeding and the principal personally took her to the hospital and everyone is at the scene of the crime!"

Kouji didn't try to make sense of his brother's hasty chattering as they dashed to the Yamaguchi High soccer field.

He didn't utter a word as they met up with Tomoki and Junpei. Takuya was nowhere to be found. True to Kouichi's word, it seemed the entire student body and staff surrounded a spot on the field. Most of them turned as the four teenage boys appeared.

Several students tried to speak with Kouji but he ignored them and pushed his way through the crowd until the scene of the crime was laid out before him. Sunny-yellow caution tape bordered the section of the grass where scarlet splotches were scattered; some of them were still fresh. A few police officers were interrogating some of the teachers and students nearby who nervously replied to their inquiries.

"Come with me." The twins' English teacher, Sato-sensei emerged from the crowd and muttered into their ears when she spotted them.

The two wordlessly followed her out of the throng of people to the school's offices. The only one open was the principal's. Sato-san stepped inside, advising the teenagers to take a seat in the two chairs placed in front the principal's desk.

"Sensei…" Kouichi started but stopped to not appear rude.

"My brother wanted for me to talk to you two personally. Your other three friends will be spoken to later. Well, after we find one of them." The twins knew who Sato-sensei was referring to.

The teacher took a short breath and let it out. Then she spoke again.

"Orimoto Izumi is in critical condition but she is being treated very well. My brother himself is paying for the hospital fees. None of us know in detail what occurred during the fight but we know that the gang of yankii escaped before the violent act was committed. The police are tracking the perpetrators down to find out the reason why Orimoto-san was attacked and to catch them. We can't ask the victim herself because…"

"Because why?" Kouichi asked nervously; Kouji remained silent.

"Izumi-chan is in a coma. The doctors say it's mainly from shock and depending on how strong she is it will determine when she'll wake up." Sato-sensei concluded her explanation.

As Kouichi muttered to himself for comfort, Kouji stared at the floor beneath him to try to organize his thoughts.

It seemed as if he was back in fifth grade when he met his brother. Kouichi had been in a coma at that time. It had been difficult for him when he saw Kouichi lying on the hospital bed, appearing almost lifeless as a machine was helping him to breathe independently. But then, by a miracle, Kouichi had woken up and the first word he spoke was his brother's name.

"When can we see her?" Kouji was surprised at the words that came out.

Sato-sensei appeared startled as well but answered his question.

"Not now. Tomorrow afternoon you can once everything calms down. Your parents need to be informed and Izumi's foreign exchange agent."

Then, they heard an announcement made by the assistant principal: teachers and students should head to their classrooms and begin class.

"Time to go. Just try to be calm and focus on your classes; you two will get through the day," Sato-sensei advised the twins.

Kouichi nodded for both him and his silent brother. Kouji noticed then that he was still carrying his school bag but couldn't feel its weight.

Another stronger weight rested on his shoulders.

For the umpteenth time, Kanbara Takuya ignored all logic and rationality, acting rashly. Thus, the situation he was currently in suited as the proper punishment for his act.

"_Nee_, what should we do with him?" One unfamiliar voice asked with a curious tone.

"Don't know. Let's see what he does once he wakes up." A second voice answered.

As the two voice and several more conversed about their succeeded mission, Takuya replayed what occurred to him since he arrived at the school that morning.

It seemed that for the first time in his life, Takuya was early for school. He was unable to sleep the previous night, plotting several things to do instead until dawn. Then, he decided to head to school; no reason propelled him to do it. Now, he wondered if he could practice on the soccer field before the first bell.

"It's not as if I have anything better to do. Who would do homework in the morning?" Takuya murmured to himself as he traveled from the boys' locker room to the field.

Upon reaching the field, Takuya was surprised to find several people beat him to it. However, he realized that they were all girls and none of them were from his school. Except one.

_Izumi-chan? What is she doing here and who are they…? _

Takuya took notice of the girls' attire as they surrounded Izumi, such as their extremely dyed hair.

_They're not wearing any shirts…just bandages wrapped around... _

He felt himself flush and immediately turned the thoughts aside, focusing on the matter at hand.

_Definitely not friends._ Takuya comprehended as she spotted the serious countenances. Izumi was stoic in her expression.

"Who are you and what do you want?" He heard Izumi speak in a tone strange to him.

The group of girls responded and then asked a question. Izumi answered softly and then they became silent. Takuya could feel his heartbeat increase rapidly and wondered if he should interfere before something awful happened. However, he wasn't given a chance.

A few of the rough-looking girls lunged at Izumi with a stick-like weapon, yelling eerily at the same time. Takuya watched in amazement as Izumi blocked both of their attacks with her arms and returned the strikes with double the strength. She appeared to be dancing an unknown routine as she moved gracefully to defend herself. Izumi retaliated their techniques easily.

_I wonder what Kouji would say at seeing her skills in karate._ Takuya thought for a brief second, still in awe at the unknown warrior that had emerged from Izumi.

_But there's too many of them! Half of them are watching her as if she was nothing! I have to help her somehow even if it means hitting a girl._

He rushed out into the field and called out Izumi's name, startling her and the other girls. Unfortunately, her guard was let down in just enough time for the other girls to strike all at once.

"Izumi-chan!" Takuya cried out as two of the assaulters grabbed Takuya and knocked him unconscious.

The last thing he saw was Izumi on the ground, blood trickling onto the bright green turf.

"Finally!" Takuya heard a voice exclaim exasperated as he opened his eyes and groaned in pain.

A pair of dark eyes with met his.

"Where the _h-ll_ am I and who the _h-ll_ are you?"


	17. Viewpoint Two Witness

If any of you have ever had a serious case of writer's block and couldn't describe it in words, this chapter is the perfect example to show it. I know you all who are reading this are eager for the next chapter and wish I could update sooner. So do I. I won't make any promises of a quicker update but I'll let you all know that I'm not giving up on this story. So, please bear with me until the very end and I will do my best to not disappoint anyone.

Digimon Frontier and its characters do not belong to me, duh. It it and they did, I would have either made the series longer or made another sequel. :D

**Chapter 17: Viewpoint Two—Witness **

**"**You did well Mei-chan," Fujita Hanachi beamed, "I didn't think you had it in you."

Mei replied quietly, "Was it necessary to go this far, President Fujita? She's in a coma and the doctors don't know when she'll wake up."

Hanachi sighed, "Your worry too much. She'll be fine. Of course she'll reconsider staying any longer in Japan but I paid those yankii girls well enough to not kill her."

Mei wondered how Hanachi could say the words so lightly.

"So they're the Kouji Minamoto Emergency Squad. How do they even know you?" Mei decided to ask, for informative purposes.

"They used to go to our school during last semester and visited the tournaments Kouji-kun participated and, of course, won in."

"I see."

Hanachi turned to look at her long time ally.

"You didn't perhaps become close to Izumi in just one night?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No Hanachi-chan. I'm just tired from the day's events," Mei answered stoically, "But I think I will go to my next class after all."

Hanachi nodded and lazily handed her a slip of paper.

"The teachers are too busy trying to get the rest of the students to focus today, so this should let you slide."

Mei accepted the fake parents' note.

"What are you going to do?"

Hanachi replied, "Celebrate here in the teachers' lounge. The food is way better than the crap we get at lunch."

Mei nodded and left the lounge without another word.

Hanachi sat down on one of the Western-style sofas and leaned her head back.

"Now what's next?" She murmured to herself.

Everything felt like a dream, one she would eventually have to wake up from.

She didn't want to.

Why should she? In this ethereal, angelic place she felt like she belonged. Here she was detached from all bodily and emotional pains that had tormented her in reality. For once she didn't have to feel apprehensive about acceptance and '"fitting in." That and the physical pains she constantly went through when no one was around were gone. Ah, peace.

How long would it last?

"You know, he's kind of cute."

"Focus Hana! He saw what we did to that Orimoto girl. Now we have to deal with him."

"Geez, you two are annoying. Quit your yakking."

Takuya Kanbara stared back at the group of girls with an annoyed expression. Every one of them had ignored his question and continued arguing amongst themselves while he remained tied and in pain.

_Why am I always the one that ends in these kinds of situations? I bet if Kouji saw me know he would laugh his butt off. Then again…he's not the type to laugh._

"So, what's your name, handsome? You do realize the situation you're in, right?"

One of the yankii girls stepped forward to present herself to Takuya. She was tall and muscular for a girl her age. Her blond, messy locks of hair immediately stood out to Takuya as well as her overuse of makeup that did anything but accent her umber brown eyes.

_Scary…_

Aloud Takuya replied, "Look, I don't want to cause any trouble. Just let me go, okay?"

The girl who seemed to be the ringleader chuckled softly.

"What makes you think we'll let you go so easily? Besides me and the rest of the Sakura gang, you're the only witness to that _terrible accident_ that happened."

Takuya cocked his head at an angle and spit out in front of him.

"You hurt Izumi-chan."

"Was that her first name? Aw, how sweet. Well, I'm sorry you had to see your girlfriend turn out how she did. Then again, she did cross with the wrong people at the wrong time."

The girl's dark eyes bore down into Takuya's face, making it impossible for him to look away.

"What…what are you talking about?"

"The name's Hanazono Hinata, thank you very much. And yours?"

Takuya scowled in reply.

"I don't see why I should tell you."

Hanazono Hinata at that moment leaned in until her face almost touched Takuya's.

"Then I guess you'll never find out the cause behind your girlfriend's _accident_."

Hinata stepped away from Takuya and turned to face her followers. She was about to walk away when-

"Wait! It's Kanbara Takuya. Why did you hurt Izumi-chan! What did she do to deserve what you did to her?"

Hinata turned to face Takuya with an odd look in her face.

"Does the name Minamoto Kouji sound familiar to you?"


	18. Explanation

Let's not even think about how many years have passed since I last updated…

**Kouji**: _cough cough_ Two years.

**Me** (glaring): Shut up. Anyways, I sincerely apologize to those who have been following this story. Every time I read one of your reviews I feel guilty for not updating. :(

**Takuya**: That's what you get for taking AP classes your junior and senior year in high school. Hey, wait! You're _old_.

**Me**: (at Takky) Not that old. Just older than you are in this fanfic. (to readers) Yep, I graduated from high school. :D No more seeing people that annoyed me or I never associated with! But I will miss the classmates I didn't dislike or hate.

**Takuya**: Hehe, the lights went out at your graduation.

**Me**: Yes they did. It was epic. Anyways, I am updating! (if you didn't guess by now) not with one chapter, but two! :D Plus, the first chapter is long, according to Word. I know it won't make up for two years of what you might call hiatus (although I never called it that) but it's something. Plus, I'm on summer vacation, extremely bored and eager for college. It's not like I have any homework to do.

**Takuya and Kouji**: So she says.

**Me**:I hope this first section makes sense and the conversation isn't too weird. There might be some OOC with Kouji, Takky, Kouichi, or whoever, but please bear with me. Allright, CHAPTER START.

**Chapter 18: Expanation**

_Izumi? Are you there? It's me, Zoe. _

_Zoe? I haven't heard you use that name in a while. _

_Hmm, well, I think it's time for me to use it again._

_Why do you say that?_

_You're in a coma, Izumi. Well, we both are._

_W-what?_

_You got into a fight with the yankii girls before school, remember? Don't ask why, but I have a feeling that Fujita girl had something to do with it. And let's face it, do you really want to go back out there and face everyone at school about what happened? I'm sure the word has already spread._

_But I have to wake up at some point. I don't want to stay in here, and then…_die _because I stayed in a coma for too long. Besides—wait, what are you up to?_

_You're a pushover, Izumi. That's reality. I'm angry at what happened. You should be _furious_. Also, I have a word or two to say to Minamoto and Fujita. That's why I'm suggesting…_

_No. You _can't_. Not that._

_You're still exhausted from that fight. Just let me take over. It'll only be for little bit._

_Don't you dare, Zoe!_

_Izumi, relax. You'll thank me for this._

_Zoe! You'll ruin everything. Remember last time?_

_I learned my lesson and I won't make the same mistake again. Promise. I want to help you, Izumi. I'm your stronger side, both physically and mentally. When I'm done, you'll find Minamoto begging for you to forgive him._

_I don't want him to beg for _anything_. Please, don't do this. _

_Just trust me. If things don't work out the way you want them to, you can take control again. Does that sound fair?_

_I-I don't know. I guess….I mean, you know what you're doing, right?_

_One hundred percent. _

_Well, I guess I have nothing to worry about._

_You can count on me._

_KoZuMiKoZuMi_

Kouji rubbed his index finger on his desk, losing himself in the intricate swirls on the wood. He then grabbed a pencil and a sheet of paper from his school bag and began sketching.

A heart-shaped face with a delicate bone structure. The nose, small but straight. Full lips spread to reveal a perfect smile. Eyes, almond shaped but not slanted like the ones he always saw around him. In his mind, they sparkled like emeralds.

As he began long strokes for the hair, Kouji wondered how it was possible for someone to have those golden tresses. They were locks of a fairy—no, of an exotic princess in his country.

"What are you doing?" A familiar voice startled him from his daydream.

Kouji looked up from his sketch and noticed Takuya standing in front of him. He hadn't even heard the door slide open. Quickly, he realized his mistake, and crumbled the paper in his hands, stowing it in his uniform's pocket.

"Nothing." Kouji averted Takuya's eyes, suddenly feeling a tense vibe coming from him.

Takuya opened his mouth, as if to remark on what Kouji had been doing, but immediately closed it.

"What is it? Did you forget to do your math homework again, and want to see mine?" Kouji finally looked up at Takuya and felt his sarcastic tone slide back when he noticed the dark look in his friend's eyes.

"You bastard." Takuya swung a closed fist, feeling the strong impact it made on Kouji's face. Kouji, unprepared, fell out of his seat and hit the cold floor.

"What the _hell! _What did you do that for? Kouji rose from his position and glared at Takuya.

Takuya didn't reply. He threw another set of fists but this time was blocked. Then, he wrapped his arms around Kouji's neck and tried to bring him down to the ground. He spat curses in Kouji's ears as both teenagers wrestled on the floor, trying to beat each other.

It didn't last long. The classroom door slid open and Kouichi, followed by their cram school homeroom teacher, Fujioka Takeshi, entered.

"Kanbara! Minamoto!" Barking at both of them, Fujioka-sensei pulled off an enraged Takuya from Kouji's back. Kouichi held back his twin before he could launch himself at the brunette.

"Detention for both of you. Starting Monday. You're also cleaning the classroom for the next two weeks." Fujioka ignored the groans from the two students as he left the classroom to go to his next class to teach.

"What's wrong with you two? Why were you fighting?" A scowl unfolded itself onto Kouichi's face, momentarily startling Takuya and Kouji.

"He started it! I was in here…finishing my lunch when he came in and knocked me out of my seat!" Kouji met Takuya's glower with dagger eyes.

"Like hell you were eating! You were drawing Izumi; I saw. You don't even have the right. Especially after what happened to her on Friday." Takuya's voice deepened.

"You weren't even here yesterday! You didn't see the _blood _spread on the field."

"Knock it off! Both of you." Both young men turned at the cold and threatening tone of Kouichi's voice. Neither of them, not even his twin, had seen him look so angry.

Kouichi, noticing his reaction, calmed himself and spoke slowly.

"Takuya, you obviously have something to say otherwise you wouldn't just punch Kouji for no reason. Does it have something to do with why you didn't come to school yesterday?"

Not wanting to see the threatening expression on Kouichi's face, Takuya nodded quickly. He took a deep breath and let it out.

"I was here, but only in the morning, and I _did_ see the blood.. I also saw the yankii girls beat up Izumi-chan."

Kouji's eyes widened and his eyebrows knitted together.

"What? _Why_ didn't you do anything?"

"Kouji, let him finish." Kouichi placed his right hand on his brother's shoulder as if to hold him back again.

Takuya looked down at his school shoes and ruffled his chestnut hair. Then he looked up and continued.

"After Izumi-chan…after they knocked her to the ground, they noticed me and knocked me unconscious as well. The next thing I knew, I was in their headquarters…"

Takuya's could still picture the abandoned warehouse he had found himself in and the three girls who had "welcomed" him when he woke up from his concussion.

He remembered Hanazono Hinata's reply when he had asked what Izumi did that resulted in her being thrashed by the yankii girls.

"Does the name Minamoto Kouji sound familiar to you?"

"Huh? Kouji? He's my friend."

Hinata froze for a moment while the Sakura gang murmured to themselves at his words. Then, she chuckled and stepped towards Takuya.

"Is that so? I thought the he didn't have any friends. That's why he's called the Lonewolf."

"Actually, a lone wolf can't really exist. Wolves travel and live in packs. That's how they survive the best. A wolf hunting and traveling by itself has more obstacles to face alone, such as the climate and other predators. Plus, if it's male, it has to mate with a she-wolf. If there's no female wolves to mate with or other wolves to help it hunt large animals…it dies rather quickly." Kouichi noticed the blank looks Takuya and Kouji gave him and paused.

"What? Oh, sorry. You can continue."

"Um, yeah. Ok."

Takuya had grinned in reply to Hinata's words.

"I wouldn't have thought that too if I didn't know him that well. Actually, I'm his best pal."

"Is that what you call yourself or does Minamoto-kun consider you to be that?" A smirk spread on Hinata's tan face. The Sakura gang snickered in the background, quickly silencing at a glare from their leader.

"Huh. Very funny. So, are you going to answer my question?" Takuya slowly stood up from the ground, dusting his school uniform and warily watching the gang's movements.

"I was getting to it. Oh, and don't worry. We won't hurt you. It was only the girl we were ordered to attack." Hinata crossed her arms and looked at Takuya.

"Ordered? By who?"

"Fujita Hanachi. I would have never guessed the president of the Kouji Minamoto fan club was so loaded. But she's bloodthirsty for sure. Or insane. That Orimoto girl didn't want to join the club, just like a girl from last year. So, she told us, the Minamoto Emergency Squad, to take care of the problem. And we did." Hinata shrugged coolly and fiddled with a loose bandage on her left arm.

Takuya gaped at her in silence. Hinata, not noticing his response, then suddenly looked at him with sparkling eyes.

"Hey! If you _are_ Minamoto-kun's best friend…you wouldn't happen to have his phone number, would you? Or his address?" She moved closer to Takuya who began backing away. The rest of the Sakura had also perked up at their leader's question and met Takuya's eyes with interest.

"Uh, whaddaya know? I don't have my cellphone with me and I don't have his number memorized. I think I'm just gonna—"

He took off, sprinting towards the warehouse's exit, not looking back to see if he was followed.

"I don't think they followed me otherwise I might not be here now. I still had some of my allowance in my uniform and took the next available train home. Luckily, my mom went shopping and visited one of her friends. So by the time she got home, it was already after school. And my dad is still on his business trip in Europe so it's not like he'll ever know" Takuya wrapped up his story and waited for Kouji and Kouichi to respond.

"Takuya, you're an idiot. You took out your frustration and anger at Kouji even though he's not really at fault. Fujita's obviously to blame. Second of all, you know the school calls parents when a student is not in class." Kouichi was the first to speak.

"Whaat? Damn it!" Takuya slapped his forehead and uttered more curse words. Then, he asked, "Hey, Kouichi. What if you pretend to be my dad and tell them I was sick?"

"If you agree to finish your part of the English project by Monday, I _might_ consider it." Kouichi's smile made a chill run up Takuya's spine.

"What do you mean you _might_?"

While Takuya prodded Kouichi for a straightforward answer, Kouji sat down in his desk and once again stared at the design in the wood. All other thoughts faded into the back of his mind. His brother's and his friend's voice seemed like distant whispers, soon covered by the rapid thumping of his heart.

He clenched his hands into tight fists, wondering if his veins would pop. Instead of his hands turning red, they became as pale as a corpse.

"Kouji? Are you all right?" Concern was etched in Kouichi's expression.

"Hey, um, I'm sorry. Your brother's right. I guess somehow in my mind I thought what happened to Izumi was your fault. I mean, if you weren't so popular with the girls, there wouldn't be a Kouji Minamoto fanclub. And if that club didn't exist then Izumi wouln't had refused to join it and she wouldn't be where she is now." Takuya stood next to Kouichi and looked down at Kouji.

"…yeah." Kouji released the tension in his hands and met the teenager boys' eyes.

"_Oniisan_. Takuya. When does that club meet?" He wore a blank expression as he spoke.

Takuya rubbed his chin. "Hmm, actually, I think they're meeting today after school in that classroom they always hang out in. Even though it's a Saturday. But it's not like they can't meet on the weekend."

"I see."

"Why do you ask?" Kouichi raised an eyebrow in puzzlement.

Kouji shook his head and shrugged.

"No reason."

At that moment, the bell rang throughout the school and the three teenage boys listened to the sound of voices coming from the hallway.

"Finally, we're free." Takuya raised his arms and stretched, yawning in the process.

"Oh, crap! We missed P.E! I've never missed class without a note before. What do you think Kato-sensei is going to do?" Kouichi looked at the other two with wide eyes.

Takuya continued yawning. "Well, Kouji and I already have detention so it's not like he can do much worse. Eh, whatever. Besides, you're sensei's favorite. He won't punish you."

Kouichi frowned, unsure.

"Well, I'm heading home. Hey, we should go to the arcade tomorrow! Maybe I can buy the new Jump magazine or better, Final Fantasy XIII." Takuya grinned.

"_Or_ you can work on your half of the project. And sorry, I have to study." Kouichi raised his eyebrow again at Takuya who sighed. Kouji also shook his head in reply.

"Yeah, whatever. See you two on Monday then." Takuya's voice softened. "Maybe Izumi-chan will be awake by then."

"Yeah, hopefully." A thin smile plastered itself on Kouichi's face. He turned to look at Kouji once Takuya left the classroom.

"You sure you're all right?"

"I'm fine. I'll probably have to talk with dad and Satomi-san from _ojiisan_'s place. When she wakes up…I don't suppose she'll be staying here longer after what happened, right?"

A sad expression crossed Kouichi's face.

"I don't know. It depends on what the foreign exchange agency says. And it's not like Izumi-chan has an actual family to go back to…but she might be sent back to that orphanage. I'm sure someone will press charges on someone and—"

"Wait, what did you say? She, she's an orphan?" Kouji looked at his twin in surprise.

Kouichi bit his lip.

"You weren't supposed to know that. Forget I said anything."

"Kouichi…"

Kouchi merely shook his head and waved his brother off.

"I'll see you at school on Monday."

Kouji watched as the door slid closed behind his brother and then he was alone.

He turned to stare at the blank chalkboard in front of the classroom.

His hands clenched once more as he rose from his seat.

"_Damn_."

Kouji ambled out of the classroom and down the hallway. He picked up his pace, eventually taking long strides to his destination.

Chattery, feminine voices reached his ears from the classroom, adding to the rage building up inside of him.

Then, without hesitation, the Lonewolf slid open the door and entered the classroom to face his predators.

~_Kaze Ni Hikari_~

Dun dun dun! Cliffy! :D But like I said, there's another chapter after this. :P


	19. Unwanted Messages

Next chapter! :D Kouji angry is not something pleasant to see. Eh, sorry for the curse words. I thought it would make his fury more effective but it might make him OOC.

**Chapter 19: Unwanted Messages**

"_Kyaa_! It's Kouji-kun!" High pitched squeals bounced around the classroom as the Lonewolf slid the door behind him.

Hanachi almost fell out of the teacher at the front. Mei was the only one who remained silent. She closely watched Kouji's detached expression, shivering inwardly from the negative vibes she felt.

"M-Minamoto-kun! What are you doing here?" Hanachi's eyes were as wide as coins.

Kouji, remaining silent, stopped in his steps and looked around at every girl in the classroom. Some held their hands close to their heart while others pinched their arms, as if to prove they weren't dreaming. Their idol of their club was before them. In the flesh.

All of the girls then began quieting down, waiting eagerly for their prince to speak.

"You're all _pathetic_." The words sliced through the still air like a blade. He scowled at them with ice-cold blue eyes.

"W-what?" Hanachi broke the silence after his words.

"Your club is a joke. I'm revolted to even look at any of you. Every time I pass by one of your groups and hear your annoying voices I want to punch a wall." Kouji's voice escalated. He didn't give any of the girls time to reply.

"You're all the same. Well, _now_ I know you all are. You surprised me, Haruki-san." He looked at Mei who pointed to herself.

"Me?"

The Lonewolf nodded.

"Vice-President of this sh*tty club? I thought you were normal. At least as normal as a girl can get."

Mei flinched at his sharps words and lowered her eyes.

"And you!" Kouji turned to Hanachi. He shook his head and let out a hollow laugh. "I don't even know what to say to you. At least I now know not to help out any stupid girl who drops her stuff in the hallway. Not if I want them stalking me every day and forming some idiotic club with me being worshiped like a god. That's all you do, right?"

He looked around again to see if anyone would reply and was met by silence.

"And when a girl—who must be smarter than all of you combined considering her response—refuses to join your mindless cult, you get someone to do the dirty work and beat her like sh*t. That seems _logical_. And what seems to make _more _sense is to do it again whenever another normal girl says no!" Kouji strode to the teacher's desk and slammed his hands on it.

The girls flinched and slowly moved closer to each other.

"Why should you care? I mean, it's not like you like her. She's just a foreigner you just met." Mei walked away from Hanachi's reach and stepped forward towards the Lonewolf.

Startled, Kouji looked up to meet her unwavering gaze.

"I don't." He replied flatly before continuing. "But I'm her host in this country and have to give some damn about her."

He stepped back from the desk and turned to the door.

"Your president asked what I was doing here. I came to give a heads-up. You know what I mean."

As he opened the door, Kouji glanced back one more time at the fanclub.

"You all better hope Orimoto-san wakes up. Or I'm not going to be the prince you think I am. Even if she does, I won't be a gentleman if this club continues to exist."

Then, without another word, he left the classroom and a group of broken hearts behind.

_ KoZuMiKoZuMi_

The line rang until a short click interrupted it. "Jane?"

"_Izumi? Is that you?_" A woman's voice carried a frantic tone.

"Yes, it's me. I'm awake, hehe." Izumi heard Jane sigh in relief.

"Thank God_. You had me worried. You had the entire orphanage back in California worried!_"

"I did? I was only sleeping."

"_I would hardly call a coma, even for almost three days, sleeping._"

"I guess you're right. The doctor and nurse said I wasn't too badly hurt, but it could have turned worse if I hadn't woken up."

Another sigh came from Jane's line.

"_You are quite something, kiddo. Well, I'm glad you're better. I'll be picking you up in Japan in about a day or so. I guess the Land of the Rising Sun wasn't as great as you wanted it to be so—_"

"Jane. I want to stay." Izumi's words were firm.

"_Wait, what?_"

"Call me crazy, but I'm still not done with _Nippon_. It was only a gang that beat me up. No different from San Francisco, really. I'll just be more careful with the people I meet." Izumi fiddled with the business card in her left hand.

"_You're insane! _Ahem_. Sorry, but I can't let you do that!_"

"Please, Jane. It wasn't the Minamoto family's fault. If they're being sued, I want that to stop. I can't go back to the orphanage now and I don't _want_ to go anywhere else."

_"…you sure?_"

"One hundred percent. Can you talk to the agency, embassy, or whatever, and convince them to let me stay?"

"_It won't be easy but I'll do my best. Can I call you back in a few hours?_"

"Go ahead. I'll probably be at Mr. Minamoto's house by then."

"_Talk to you later, Izumi._"

"Later, Jane." Izumi hung up first and placed the cell phone Jane had bought her on a small table next to her.

She looked up at the white ceiling above her, humming a current popular tune in America.

"Time for Zoe to take some action."

_ KoZuMiKoZuMi_

Soft Japanese pop music played in the room as Haruki Mei fell back on futon. She tossed and turned several times, sighing.

Then, she heard a loud vibration from her desk. She immediately stood up and walked over to it. When she noticed the name that was calling, she answered her phone.

"_Moshi, moshi_. Hanachi-chan?"

She heard sobbing at the other end of the line.

"Hi, Mei. What are you doing?"

"Nothing. I finished my homework already. Are you all right?" In her mind, Mei knew Hanachi was anything but okay.

"Mei-chan. I'm studying abroad."

"What? I mean, is that good or bad news?"

Hanachi paused. Mei could hear her sniffling.

"I don't know. My dad suddenly called home and told me he was promoted. He wants me to see Europe and then we're going to America."

"Well, that's great isn't it? You can go to Paris and buy the latest western fashions or go to Hollywood or New York like you've always wanted."

"Mei-chan. Don't think I'm being forced to move. Daddy asked me if I wanted to go first. If he had asked a few days ago I would've said no. But after what happened yesterday…" Suddenly, Hanachi burst into tears again.

"I know. Who knew Minamoto-san could be so scary."

"You were the brave one. I couldn't say anything else after what he told me. I just…I need to leave. I already talked with the Student Council and the principal about the club. It's done."

"What do you want me to tell the girls?"

"Whatever you want. It's not like I was friends with any of them, except you."

Hanachi then added, "I'm not saying goodbye. I'll Facebook you or text you. Daddy says I can even make international phone calls. Oh, do you want me to send you anything from Europe or America?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Ah, I have to go. Daddy will be home soon. Talk to you later Mei-chan."

Mei replied the same and hung up.

"I doubt you'll even remember my name by the end of the week. Rich people sure have a way of solving their problems with money."

She walked back to her futon and lay on it, staring at her ceiling covered with glow-in-the-dark stars. As she focused on one of the stars, something wet dripped down her cheeks.

The tears continued to flow as Mei curled in her bed, letting all her emotions out.

~_Kaze Ni Hikari_~

Sorry if this chapter seems too contrived with Hanachi leaving or OOC. I tried my best D:

Haha, for now this subplot ends and now begins another. Wonder what Zoe's plan is…


	20. True Self

New chapter! Yaaay! _/shot/_ I kind of had trouble starting this chapter, unsure of what setting to use (day of the week, location, etc). Also, honestly, I've been drawing a lot this summer and working on a manga project based on this idea I've had. (so not much writing) Also, I'm about to go to my college orientation (on Monday) so I've been getting ready for that by going over French tenses and stuff.

**Takuya**: (cough) Yeah, right. Fail. _/shot/_

**Me**: Just kidding…that'll happen in my other fanfic, _The Great Takuya_, once I get back to working on it.

**Takuya**: Wait, what?

**Me**: Anyways, enjoy this chapter! :D I will try to update some more after orientation. Wish me luck on my French test! (because my AP test score was a_ fail. /double tap/ _Calculus was just as bad…at least I got 4s on my English and Biology AP exam :D…though I can't use my Bio score for credit because of my major _...ugh, insert disclaimer now.

**Disclaimer**: Digimon Frontier and its characters do not belong to me. They belong to Toei (I think). Only my OCs belong to me :P

**Chapter 20: True Self**

"Kouji? Can you come down?" Kouji put down his pencil on his desk as his grandfather's voice echoed from downstairs.

Puzzled, he left his room and descended down the stairs. Noticing the light turned on, he headed towards the kitchen.

For once in his life, the Lonewolf did a double take as he saw the person sitting with her back towards him.

Was he dreaming? No, impossible. Why would he dream about _her_?

"Surpriiise." Sensei greeted his grandson with a wide grin on his face and motioned for him to sit down next to her.

Kouji didn't move. He continued to stare at the girl who was none other than Izumi Orimoto. Still not looking at him, she lifted her tea mug and took several sips from the warm drink.

Finally, not wanting to make the situation more awkward than he was already doing, Kouji stepped forward and took his place next to her.

"About time." He couldn't help but hear the derisive tone of her voice.

Izumi set down her tea mug, sighed, and then turned to face the Lonewolf.

He was taken back once more. What used to be a pale, china-doll like face was marred with scars that varied in thickness. Her neck and arms were covered in dark, splotchy bruises. Her arms looked

Yet somehow, in his mind, all of the injuries managed to complement her foreign beauty. Instead of it being splattered out like paint on a canvas, it was framed by the imperfections, adding to a complete balance. It was like looking at a garden full of weeds and flowers where the lovely roses, tulips, daisies stood out among the wild plants' entropy.

"What? Is something wrong with my face?" Surprising him even more, Izumi sneered darkly and then gave him the cold shoulder.

"How about I make dinner tonight? Izumi-chan, maybe you should tell Kouji what you're going to do?" As if sensing the heavy tension, Kouji's grandfather stood from his chair and began preparing the meal.

Izumi sighed again and nodded once.

"It's not _that_ big of a deal but if you must know, I decided to stay here a bit longer. I still haven't seen much of Japan and I'm not letting a group of yankiis stopping me from enjoying my visit." Izumi, not meeting Kouji's eyes, looked at her fingernails and continued to drink her tea.

"Maybe this time, Kouji will do a better job of showing you around. Not all Japanese people are as bad or violent as the ones you met, Izumi-chan." Sensei stopped what he was doing and glanced at her for a moment.

"Maybe." Izumi looked at Kouji from her peripheral vision and said, "You don't have to show me around. Seems like it'll be a bother to you. I'll just ask Kouichi-kun or that Takuya guy."

He didn't reply and remained silent throughout dinner, much to his grandfather's discontent.

As he and Izumi headed upstairs to go to bed Kouji stopped in his steps.

"Hey." He paused until she glanced in his direction, startled.

"What happened to you? Did you switch places with someone else? You're acting different."

For a second he caught a hint of recognition in her eyes. However, it was quickly swept away with a blank stare that beat his own.

"Maybe I'm just acting like my true self. Like a familiar saying in America, be yourself if you want to make new friends. Have you heard of it?" Izumi cocked her head in his direction, a curtain of hair swinging in front of her. She quickly tucked it back.

"Something like that." Then, without saying anymore Kouji walked away and entered his room.

He couldn't concentrate the rest of the night. All he could think about was the unfamiliar pair of green eyes looking at him in mockery and the person who wore her smile, a sarcastic one, as if it belonged to her.

_What the hell happened to her? _

_ KoZuMiKoZuMi_

"Hey, Kouichi? Did you hear? Izumi's coming back to school. Everyone's talking about it." Takuya for once, muttered into the young man's ear as he took his seat at his desk.

Kouichi sighed and slid into his own chair, pulling out his school supplies for the day.

"Kouichi? Did—"

"Yes, Takuya. I know. That's all I've been hearing since I came to school. Actually, I'm pretty sure I was the first one at school to know, besides Kouji. He called me yesterday to tell me about it. Now, did you finish your half of the project?"

Takuya hung his head.

"I was hoping you'd forget about that."

He suddenly felt a dark aura from the seat where the twin sat and was met with a smile that gave him shivers.

"That's not good. I thought we'd agreed you'd finish it by today."

"When did I say that?"

As Takuya continued to struggle against the evil presence in front of him, the rest of the classroom was doing what Kouichi had mentioned.

Haruki Mei sat among the gossip, reading a shoujo manga but not actually paying attention.

"Hey, Mei. What happened to Hanachi-chan?" A ponytailed haired girl with deer –like eyes broke away from a group of girls and turned to her.

"She transferred. She's studying abroad in Europe and then America." Mei didn't look up from her book as she replied.

"Aw, no way! She's so lucky. Oh, but that's kind of sad. Weren't the two of you, like, best friends?" The other girl frowned, her eyes sparkling sadly.

Mei shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess. I talk to her on Facebook though so it's not like I won't speak to her again." In her mind she couldn't help but laugh at the irony.

"Oh, that's right. But if you want anyone to talk and sit with at lunch, you can sit with me and my friends."

Mei stopped flipping the page in her manga book. She looked up at the girl named Amano Nami in surprise.

"Are you sure? I don't want to be a bother."

Nami smiled in response. "It's okay. You won't be. I'm sure the other girls won't mind."

"Um, okay."

"Great! Oh, is that _Dengeki Daisy_? I loove that manga!" (totally recommend reading this manga :) )

The two girls carried on their conversation until the rest of Nami's group became interested and began talking about shojo manga they had read.

The classroom was full of chattering amongst the students and groans from those who hadn't understood their homework assignments and knew they would fail their daily quiz. (Calculus. Been there. Done that. D: )

Then, all voices became silent as the classroom door slid open and a raven-haired young man stepped inside. He was followed by a pale, blonde girl who met no one's eyes as she walked to her seat.

Izumi once again felt the many pairs of eyes on her scars and bruises. The moment she set foot on the high school campus, eyes watched her warily. She ignored the stares as she took out her homework from before the accident up to the current assignments. Then, she looked at the classroom clock until the bell rang and the teacher arrived.

_ KoZuMiKoZuMi_

"Izumi-chan? Did you need any help with the work that you missed?" Kouichi turned from his seat, aware of the hushed whispers and stares from his classmates.

"Um, perhaps with Japanese. The writing is pretty difficult for me. There's so many characters I have to memorize." Izumi chuckled and met the young man's eyes with a nervous grin.

"Haha. It must be hard on you, having to learn all of this." Kouichi replied as he moved to the empty seat in front of her and began helping her with her work during the class's study period. He couldn't help but notice the odd look in her eyes as she spoke to him. It was as if he was conversing with someone he was meeting for the first time.

Meanwhile, Takuya swiveled in his seat to face the Lonewolf and asked him about Izumi.

"Is she okay? I mean, she seems kind of different. More confident, I guess."

Kouji couldn't help but agree in his mind but he wasn't about to let the brunette know anytime soon. Instead, he shrugged and continued to study his English notes for the next test.

Slightly annoyed, Takuya resumed his usual position during study time and began to take a nap.

"Shouldn't you be studying, Takuya?" He cursed to himself as the evil presence spoke to him.

Kouichi looked at him with an innocent stare as he sat up straight in his seat and began flipping his empty notebook.

"Ah..I don't have the notes from today's lessons. Could I look at yours, Kouichi?" Takuya wanted nothing more than to bolt out of the classroom and be anywhere but there.

The twin smiled at him and handed him a notebook with his clean handwriting.

"Here you go. Enjoy."

_As if anyone could enjoy studying. Stupid evil Kouichi..am I the only who sees the scary look in his eyes?_

"Thanks." Takuya opened the notebook and began to do what he hadn't done in a long time, only to try to erase the dark presence from his thoughts.

"It's a miracle."

He felt himself blush as he heard Izumi's light giggling and wished he was the one helping her study.

~_Kaze Ni Hikari_~

Hmm…K1, K2, and Takky suspect something…wonder what will happen with Zoe unleashed…:P


	21. Just Floating By

I have returned from the dark and torturous depths known as first semester of college! _/shot/_ I have survived the deathly journey known as studying for finals and taking them! Now, I have about a month of break to do stuff I've been wanting to do since summer vacation but never got done because I'm a big procrastinator!

**Takuya**: ….Just get on with the story already. No one cares about your college adventures.

**Me**: You're just saying that because this chapter focuses on you instead of the main characters.

**Takuya**: Wait…I'm not a main character?

**Me**: -sigh-The story is called _Kaze __ni __Hikari_. Wind into Light. 風に光。According to the original Digimon Frontier series, your element is fire. _Hi_. 火。

**Takuya**: Okay, okay, I get it! You don't have to show off your Kanji skills on here! As if you had any since you've only been taking Japanese for a semester and—

**Me**: Time for the disclaimer!

**Disclaimer**: Digimon does not belong to me or its canon characters. Only the OCs belong to me, unfortunately.

**Takuya**: …I deserve more screen time. Or writing time. Whatever it's called.

**Chapter 21: Just Floating By**

_Saturday_

"_Shonen __Jump_. I got me some _Shonen __Jump_. Da dee da dee dah…" Takuya Kanbara strolled along the sidewalk carrying a thick manga magazine in his right arm. In his left, he held two bags of groceries that swung back and forth in rhythm to his steps.

He stopped at an intersection and struggled to glance at the time on his left hand while balancing the weight of the groceries at the same time.

"Ten-fifteen. Hmm…plenty enough time to catch up on _Gintama_ and _Sket __Dance_and then I have the whole day to myself." A grin spread across Takuya's face as he brainstormed how he would spend his Saturday.

The brunette took a moment to check for any passing cars and then he crossed the street to the next sidewalk that would eventually lead him home. He began whistling a familiar anime opening as he passed through his neighborhood.

"…_oretachi __no __roo_—what the _hell_?" Takuya stopped dead in his steps.

His arms fell to his side and he dropped the bags of groceries along with the _Shonen __Jump_ magazine on the sidewalk. Then, he rushed over to the figure sprawled a few feet ahead of him on the ground.

Takuya noted the purple-black bruises and bloodstains all over the girl's body. He also took notice of the bleached blonde locks that covered her face.

_Wait __a __moment__…__I__'__ve __seen __her __before__…__shit.__._

He grimaced as he turned over the limp body of Hanazono Hinata to her back.

"Oh God, what if she's dead?" Takuya paused for a moment and then leaned in closer to the yankii girl's face. It was there. He heard it barely, but her faint breathing was there.

The brunette sighed in relief and was thinking of what to do when a familiar voice interrupted his thoughts.

"What the…where am I? Who…get away from me!"

Takuya felt his breath being knocked out of him as he was kicked backwards to the ground.

When he stood up, he was met by a dark glare coming from the girl's umber brown eyes.

"You!" Hanazono Hinata snarled in surprise as she recognized him.

"Is that how you greet someone who's trying to help you?" Takuya met her glare with a look of apathy, although he felt otherwise.

"Tch. Is that what you were trying to do? I wouldn't know; I've never been helped before." The yankii girl spit onto the sidewalk, ignoring Takuya's look of disgust.

"Seriously? There had to be—"

"None. Now how 'bout you pick up your crap and leave me alone?"

Takuya felt his jaw open slightly but then closed it immediately.

"You look like you've been hit by a truck. Like hell I'm leaving you here by yourself." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone.

He scrolled through his contacts, trying to figure out who he could call when she cried out to him.

"Don't call anyone! I'm serious. What happened is no one's business but my own."

Takuya caught the desperate look in her eyes.

"So…_what_ did happen?"

"Didn't you just hear what I said?" A scowl broke on her face.

"Yeah, loud and clear. I'm just trying to help."

"You and your help. I don't need it."

Takuya shook his head and sighed and then began looking at his phone again.

"All right. All right! I'll tell you. Just don't call anyone. And…you mind helping me get up?"

"So you _do _need help." He snapped shut his phone and slipped it into his pocket.

Hanazono Hinata growled in response as Takuya approached and wrapped his arms around her torso. He paused for a moment, feeling a strange warmth spread inside him.

_Wait. What I am getting all nervous for? This isn't a big deal._

"Hey, are you daydreaming or something? Having some perverted fantasy?"

"Like _hell_ I am! You're as heavy as a statue!"

Once again, Takuya felt the wind being knocked out of him and he fell back with Hanazono Hinata falling on top of him.

"Oi! What did you do that for?" He suddenly noticed how close she was to him and his face contorted into a strange expression..

"You mind getting off of me? You're kind of—"

"Didn't anyone ever tell you it's rude to call a girl heavy? You're one of those guys with zero sensitivity, aren't you?" Hanazono Hinata slapped his face before rolling over to her back.

"Ow! Are you some violent gorilla girl or something?" Takuya jumped back as she quickly sat up and gave him a deathly stare. Then, she winced in pain and lay back down again.

"Just…just forget it. There's no point in talking to an idiot like you. There's no point in talking to anyone…" She sighed and stared at the vast cerulean sky above her.

She flinched when she felt movement beside her. Then, her eyes widened in surprise when Takuya lay beside her.

"Then, don't talk to me. Talk to the sky. I'm not here. I'm just like that cloud up there, just floating by." Takuya raised his arm and pointed to a small white cloud drifting through the blue expanse.

Hanazono Hinata replied with silence. She stared at the cloud with her hands folded across her bandaged chest and simply sighed.

"I was beat to a pulp by the new Sakura gang's leader. Or should I say, the Rose gang's empress. She's the daughter of a famous yakuza and bought off my followers with her money. I underestimated her and ended up facing her head to head in front of everyone. Yeah, she's a spoiled bitch. But, she was also taught to fight from birth in her family. It was like facing a wild grizzly bear. I had no chance and I'm lucky I'm still alive."

Out of the corner of her eye, Hanazono Hinata saw Takuya nod for her to continue.

"But, that's just not it. I never had a chance the moment I thought I could change myself. I heard that my mom came back from who knows where and she was looking for me. She wanted to see me, the old me. I guess my plans were obvious to my gang. They knew I wanted to stop being a yankii…so maybe in some way they were being considerate by joining the Rose gang. Or maybe they didn't want to follow a weak leader and decided to let someone stronger than them finish me off. "

"So, you were heading off to your mom's place after losing that fight?"

"I didn't know the sky could talk." Takuya didn't miss the sarcastic tone in Hanazono Hinata's voice. When he didn't reply, she continued to speak.

"Are you kidding me? Head to her place like this? She wouldn't even recognize me, —especially after a year since she left."

Takuya's voice softened.

"Then, where were you going off looking like the living dead?"

"I don't know…" Her voice trailed off and she became silent again.

At that moment, Takuya sat up and jumped to his feet. Once again, he pulled out his cell phone from his pocket. However, this time, he knew who to call.

"H-hey! I thought I told you not to call anyone!"

"I can't leave you here by yourself in that condition. Unfortunately, I can't take you anywhere either since I have that to take care of" Takuya pointed to the bags of groceries and his _Shonen__Jump_ magazine. "My mom might ask a lot of questions but I'll just make something up or not say anything."

"Ugh…why did I have to be saved by a guy like you? Why couldn't it have been your friend, Kouji?" Hanazono Hinata covered her face with the palm of her right hand.

"Well, _sorry _I'm not him. Actually, no, I'm not. You'd be luckier if it was Kouichi, his brother. Then again…"

"Just call your mom already!"

Takuya placed the phone to his ear and heard ringing on the line. Then, a click.

"Hey, mom? Yeah, I have your groceries. Um…there's something else too…"

Hanazono Hinata looked at the sky and noticed more clouds had appeared. For some time, they had surrounded the first cloud she had spotted and almost seemed to merge together into a larger, greyer cloud.

She felt drops drip onto her face and trail down her cheeks.

"Aw man! Is it starting to rain? I thought it was supposed to be clear the entire day!" Takuya cursed, unaware he was still talking to his mom. He heard a scolding tone from the other line and quickly apologized as he scrambled to pick up his things from the sidewalk.

"Yeah…so did I." Hanazono Hinata mumbled to herself as more drops spilled on her face. She tasted their salty flavor. It reminded her of another time she tasted salty drops.

That time…she had been more naïve than she was now. It was another story to tell at another time.

~_Kaze __Ni __Hikari_~

Yay for subplots! They help this writer get the main plot moving….yeah. For those of those who want to know (or if you don't want to know but I'm going to tell you anyway) the anime opening Takuya sings is the _Sket __Dance_ opening by Gackt. Go listen to it. While you all are at it, go watch _Sket __Dance_, the anime or read the manga. Go watch _Gintama _and read the manga too. They're both awesome.


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